Last night’s intriguing Bears-Broncos game signaling the return of former Denver QB Jay Cutler to the Mile High City gave NBC a primetime win on Sunday night, but also gave the NFL its highest exhibition overnight ratings in five years.
"NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL" SCORES BEST NFL PRESEASON OVERNIGHT IN 5 YEARSSunday Night Football Dominates the Night, Delivering Peacock's Best Sunday Night Performance Since Super Bowl
NEW YORK - August 31, 2009 - NBC Sports' "Sunday Night Football" preseason game last night delivered the best overnight rating for any NFL preseason game on any network in five years. The 7.3 overnight rating and 12 share (8-11 p.m. ET) for the Chicago Bears-Denver Broncos preseason contest was the best since the 8.2/13 for the Titans-Cowboys preseason game on August 30, 2004.
Sunday Night Football was the No. 1 telecast of the night in the metered markets and dominated its time period, more than doubling second-place CBS in the time slot (7.3 vs. 3.4). NBC averaged a 6.4/11 from 7-11 p.m. ET, representing the network's highest Sunday primetime average in the metered markets since Super Bowl XLIII on Feb. 1.
The broadcast, which featured Bears QB Jay Cutler's return to Denver after his off-season trade from the Broncos to the Bears, peaked at an 8.2/14 from 9-9:30 p.m. ET. The preseason game was won by the Bears 27-17.
Top 10 Metered Markets:
1. Denver, 25.9/45
2. Chicago, 22.6/36
3. Las Vegas, 12.1/19
4. Milwaukee, 11.0/18
5. Albuquerque, 10.7/17
6. Nashville, 10.6/16
7. Jacksonville, 10.4/16
8. Oklahoma City, 10.1/15
9. New Orleans, 9.1/13
10. Indianapolis, 8.8/14
As expected, Denver and Chicago are the top markets, but seeing non-NFL markets like Las Vegas, Albuquerque and Oklahoma City certainly bode well for football this season.
