So instead of having CBS’ previews, we have CBS’ press release on its Thursday Night Football numbers for the first game of Week 3. Despite the game being over at the opening kickoff, the Tampa Bay-Atlanta game in which the Falcons laid a 50 burger on the Buccaneers by a dominant 56-14 score garnered an impressive 11.8 million viewers which beat the combined viewership of ABC, Fox and NBC rather handily.
The game received a 7.5 rating with a 13 share. So we know that Thursday Night Football is a hit for CBS.
Here’s the press release.
“THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL” ON CBS AND NFL NETWORK WINS IN PRIMETIME WITH VIEWERS AND RATINGS
CBS and NFL Network’s broadcast of THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL on Thursday, Sept. 18, which featured Atlanta’s lopsided 56-14 victory over Tampa Bay, gave CBS and NFL Network a dominant primetime win. Thursday night’s programming on CBS and NFL Network in primetime from 8:00-11:00 PM, ET averaged 11.8 million viewers, which beat the combined delivery of the other broadcast networks, NBC, ABC and FOX, by +15% (11.8 million vs. 10.3 million).
Atlanta’s 42-point victory over Tampa Bay, which saw the Falcons jump out to a 35-0 halftime lead, registered as the largest point differential ever for an NFL Network Thursday night game. The game was seen by an average of 11.9 million viewers (Live + Same Day), +7% from last year’s comparable viewing average of 11.1 million (for Kansas City-Philadelphia; 9/19/13) on NFL Network and over-the-air-stations within the two team markets.
Thursday night’s programming on CBS and NFL Network in primetime from 8:00-11:00 PM, ET averaged 11.8 million viewers, which also was +74% higher in viewer average from last year’s 6.8 million. CBS’s primetime programs on Sept. 19, 2013 were rebroadcasts of THE BIG BANG THEORY (8:00 PM), TWO AND A HALF MEN (8:31 PM), THE BIG BANG THEORY (9:01 PM), TWO AND A HALF MEN (9:31 PM) and ELEMENTARY (10:01 PM).
Thursday night’s game earned an average national household rating/share of 7.5/13 (Live + Same Day), +7% higher from last year’s comparable game rating/share of 7.0/12 for Kansas City-Philadelphia, which was the highest-rated game ever on NFL Network and over-the-air-stations within the two team markets.
From 8:00-11:00 PM, ET the CBS/NFL Network broadcast averaged a national HH rating/share of 7.5/13, which is +67% higher than last year’s 4.5/7 for CBS primetime programming.
The household rating/share and viewer average peaked at 8.8/15 with 14.0 million viewers, respectively, from 9:00-9:30 PM, ET.
THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL will continue next week on Sept. 25 with the N.Y. Giants at Washington.
Fox’s preview is next.
