The Jaguars’ return to the cellar was bad news for Thursday Night Football.
FOX and NFL Network earned a combined 6.7 rating and 10.8 million viewers for the Week 14 Jaguars-Titans Thursday Night Football game, up 3% in ratings and 1% in viewership from the tenth TNF simulcast last season (Week 15 Broncos-Colts: 6.5, 10.6M) but down 37% and 40% respectively from the tenth simulcast in 2016 (Week 16 Giants-Eagles: 10.6, 17.9M).
Versus last year’s Week 14 TNF game — Saints-Falcons — ratings fell 25% (from 8.9) and viewership 26% (from 14.6M).
Ratings and viewership were the fourth-lowest on record for a primetime NFL game on broadcast television. This year’s Thursday Night Football schedule accounts for three of the bottom five, with all three games involving a sub-.500 team.
In both adults 18-49 (3.1) and adults 25-54 (3.9), ratings were the third-lowest on record (dating back to 2000) for a primetime NFL game on broadcast TV. Ratings in adults 18-34 were tied as the second-lowest on record (2.2).
Lowest Primetime NFL Ratings, Viewership, on Broadcast TV
| Lowest Rated | Least-Watched | ||||||||
| # | Year | Game | Rtg | Net | # | Year | Game | Vwrs | Net |
| 1 | 2018 | DEN-ARIZ | 5.6 | FOX* | 1 | 2018 | DEN-ARIZ | 9.10M | FOX* |
| 2 | 2008 | SEA-TB | 6.3 | NBC | 2 | 2008 | SEA-TB | 10.01M | NBC |
| 3 | 2017 | DEN-IND | 6.5 | NBC* | 3 | 2017 | DEN-IND | 10.64M | NBC* |
| 4 | 2018 | JAX-TEN | 6.7 | FOX* | 4 | 2018 | JAX-TEN | 10.76M | FOX* |
| 5 | 2018 | OAK-SF | 6.8 | FOX* | 5 | 2018 | OAK-SF | 11.06M | FOX* |
| 6 | 2017 | MIA-BAL | 7.0 | CBS* | 6 | 2007 | NO-SEA | 11.19M | NBC |
| 7 | 2007 | NO-SEA | 7.1 | NBC | 7 | 2017 | MIA-BAL | 11.36M | CBS* |
| 8 | 2016 | SF-AZ | 7.4 | CBS* | 8 | 2004 | TB-STL | 11.48M | ABC |
| T9 | 2018 | MIA-HOU | 7.5 | FOX* | 9 | 2001 | TEN-OAK | 11.71M | ABC |
| 2014 | TB-ATL | 7.5 | CBS* | 10 | 2014 | TB-ATL | 11.88M | CBS* | |
| 2001 | TEN-OAK | 7.5 | ABC | ||||||
This year’s games highlighted; asterisk (*) indicates NFL Network simulcast.
[Numbers from NFL Network, Nielsen via Programming Insider 12.7]
