NFL Hall of Fame Game ratings were the lowest on broadcast television in at least 20 years.
Thursday’s Bears-Ravens NFL Hall of Fame Game earned a 4.1 rating and 6.77 million viewers on NBC, down 18% in ratings and viewership from last year (Cowboys-Cardinals: 5.0, 8.2M) and down 38% in both measures from 2015, the last time the game aired on a Sunday night (Vikings-Steelers: 6.6, 11.0M). The 2016 game was canceled due to field conditions.
The Ravens’ win ranks as the lowest rated and least-watched Hall of Fame Game in six years, since Saints-Cardinals on NFL Network opposite the Olympics in 2012 (1.2, 1.97M).
Excluding games on NFL Network, it was the lowest rated and least-watched Hall of Fame Game in at least 20 years. The previous lows were a 4.7 and 7.4 million for Washington-Indianapolis in 2008.
Bears-Ravens scored a 2.0 rating in adults 18-49, down 20% from last year (2.5) and down 44% from 2015 (3.6). Notably, the 2.0 does not even rank as the top demo rating of the week. NBC’s America’s Got Talent had a 2.1 on Tuesday.
It also had a 1.5 rating in adults 18-34, down 17% from last year (1.8) and down 48% from 2015 (2.9).
The Hall of Fame Game has in the past been a useful indicator of the NFL’s dominance, comparing favorably to major postseason events in the other sports. This year’s audience trailed all 14 games in the NBA Conference Finals, coming closest to Celtics-Cavaliers Game 3 (6.83M), but did top nine of last year’s 12 MLB League Championship Series games. Keep in mind several LCS games aired in the afternoon.
If the Hall of Fame Game were a college football bowl, it would have ranked ninth out of last season’s 36 games on Nielsen rated networks.
Baltimore was Thursday’s top market with a 16.9 rating, followed by neutral market New Orleans at an 11.8. Chicago was third at a 10.6.
[Numbers from Programming Insider 8.3, Sports Business Daily 8.3]
