The first game of the NFL preseason put up solid numbers on NBC Sunday.
The Bills/Titans NFL Hall of Fame Game drew a 4.9/9 final rating and 7.9 million viewers on NBC Sunday night, up 4% in ratings and 7% in viewers from a 4.7/8 and 7.4 million last year, but down 28% in ratings and 25% in viewers from a 6.8/12 and 10.6 million in ’06.
This marks the second-lowest rated and second-least viewed NFL Hall of Fame Game on broadcast since ’00. Since 1999, when the game drew a 10.1/18 rating, ratings for the NFL Hall of Fame Game have declined 51%.
The game drew a 27.1 rating in Nashville and an 18.0 in Buffalo.
To put the numbers in perspective, the 7.9 million viewers for the Hall of Fame Game — a meaningless preseason contest — tops the average viewership for the 2008 MLB postseason (6.8 million), the 2008-09 college football bowl season (6.0 million), and the 2009 NBA Playoffs (5.4 million). The Hall of Fame Game even drew a higher rating than Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals (4.9 to 4.3), and nearly matched the game — the most-viewed NHL game in 36 years — in viewership (7.9 mil to 8.0 mil).
Ratings/viewership for the NFL Hall of Fame Game since ’00.
Ratings and shares presented for games on broadcast; U.S. rating and cable rating (in parentheses) presented for games on cable.
| Year | Date | Game | Net | Rating | Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Sun., 8/9/09 | Bills/Titans | NBC | ||
| 2008 | Sun., 8/3/08 | Washington/Colts | NBC | ||
| 2007 | Sun., 8/5/07 | Saints/Steelers | NFLN |
n/a
|
|
| 2006 | Sun., 8/6/06 | Raiders/Eagles | NBC | ||
| 2005 | Mon., 8/8/05 | Dolphins/Bears | ABC | ||
| 2004 | Mon., 8/9/04 | Broncos/Washington | ABC | ||
| 2003 | Mon., 8/4/03 | Packers/Chiefs | ABC | ||
| 2002 | Mon., 8/5/02 | Giants/Texans | ABC | ||
| 2001 | Mon., 8/6/01 | Dolphins/Rams | ABC | ||
| 2000 | Mon., 7/31/00 | 49ers/Patriots | ABC |
n/a
|
