Though down from last year, CBS attracted solid numbers for its Week 2 NFL doubleheader.
The Week 2 NFL national window, featuring Chiefs/Broncos in 56% of markets, drew a 14.4 final rating and 24.9 million viewers on CBS last Sunday — down 9% in ratings and 6% in viewership from coverage featuring the ‘Manning Bowl’ last year (15.8, 26.4M), but up 18% and 25%, respectively, from coverage featuring Jets/Steelers in 2012 (12.2, 19.9M).
The modest decline in final ratings marks a turnaround from the overnights, which declined by 18%.
As is usually the case, the national window earned the largest NFL audience of the week — finishing comfortably ahead of NBC’s Sunday Night Football (12.9, 22.2M). It drew an 8.6 rating among adults 18-49, down 6% from last year (9.1) but up 16% from 2012 (7.4).
Earlier in the day, the early doubleheader window drew a 7.8 and 13.1 million viewers — down 2% in ratings but up 5% in viewership from last year (8.0, 12.5M) and down 9% and 2%, respectively, from 2012 (8.6, 13.4M).
(Sun. numbers from Sports Business Daily, with additional info from TV By the Numbers)
