Ratings: NFL on CBS, Notre Dame, MLB

Compared to the second CBS singleheader last season, which took place in Week 3, ratings increased 27% (from 7.0) and viewership 28% (from 11.94M).

CBS is averaging an 8.9 and 15.31 million through two weeks this season, up 6% and 4% respectively compared to its first two singleheaders last season (8.4, 14.68M).

Kansas City led all markets for the singleheader with a 39.6 rating and a 69 share, meaning that 69% of televisions in use were tuned to the game. Buffalo ranked second at a 36.4 and a 67, followed by Boston (33.0/65), Providence, R.I. (26.3/50) and Nashville (25.2/49).

Last Saturday’s New Mexico-Notre Dame college football game averaged a 1.0 rating and 1.50 million viewers, tying the lowest Notre Dame rating ever on the NBC broadcast network. It matched the team’s 2017 home opener against Temple and their 2016 home finale against Army.

It was also the lowest rated and least-watched Notre Dame game on any network in two years, since the team played Miami (Ohio) on NBCSN in 2017 (0.5, 798K). Excluding games on NBCSN (and CBS Sports Network, which is not Nielsen-rated), it was the lowest rated since a 2011 matchup with Purdue on ESPN (0.9).

Dodgers-Mets averaged a 0.7 rating and 1.08 million viewers on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball last weekend, marking the least-watched Sunday night game this season. The Dodgers’ win was flat in ratings and down 1% in viewership from last year (Dodgers-Cardinals: 0.7, 1.10M), but up 27% in both measures from 2017 (Dodgers-Nationals: 0.6, 855K).

In other action, Reds-Cubs averaged 918,000 viewers on ESPN Tuesday — up 47% from last year (Cardinals-Braves: 625K) and up 15% from 2017 (Yankees-Twins: 795K). Phillies-Braves averaged 430,000 Wednesday, down 59% from Red Sox-Yankees last year (1.04M) and down 21% from 2017 (Red Sox-Orioles: 543k).

Figures for last Sunday’s Braves-Nationals game on TBS were not available.