Whether it was Ray Rice or people are just starved for football, another network TV primetime NFL package scored in the ratings. The Pittsburgh-Baltimore game to kick off the new combined CBS/NFL Network Thursday Night Football series gave the networks a 13.7 overnight rating with a 23 share. That’s up a whopping 108% from last year’s opener on NFL Network that garnered a 6.6/12 number.
For both the pregame show and game, CBS and NFL Network saw a 12.9/22 which improves on CBS’ primetime programming by 215% from last year. You can see why CBS was so willing to pay to get Thursday Night Football.
Here’s the CBS/NFL Network announcement.
“THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL” ON CBS AND NFL NETWORK MORE THAN DOUBLES OPENING NIGHT RATINGS FROM A YEAR AGO
Pittsburgh-Baltimore Rating +108% from Last Year
CBS and NFL Network’s debut broadcast of THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL earned an overnight household rating/share of 13.7/23, +108% from last year’s comparable game on NFL Network (from 6.6/12; N.Y. Jets-New England; 9/12/13), in the 56 metered markets.
Last night’s programming on CBS and NFL Network from 8:00-11:00 PM averaged a prime time household rating/share of 12.9/22, which was +215% higher than the comparable CBS primetime programming a year ago (from 4.1/7). CBS’s primetime programming on September 12, 2013 was BIG BANG THEORY repeat (8:00 PM); CBS FALL PREVIEW SHOW (8:31 PM); BIG BROTHER (9:01 PM); and ELEMENTARY repeat (10:00 PM).
The debut of THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL was CBS’s best primetime Thursday delivery since May 18, 2006 (13.7/21; CSI SPECIAL – 8:00 PM, CSI – 9:00 PM, WITHOUT A TRACE – 10:00 PM).
Last night’s HH rating/share of 13.7/23 for the Pittsburgh-Baltimore game also was +99% higher than the all-time best rating/share on NFL Network (6.9/12; Kansas City-Philadelphia; 9/19/13).
Last night’s game HH rating/share peaked at 14.6/24 from 9:00-9:30 PM, ET.
THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL will continue next week on September 18 with Tampa Bay at Atlanta.
To say CBS executives are high-fiving and fist bumping would be an understatement.
