NFL Media Notes: Rams-Packers Leads To Ratings Gain For ABC

Favre’s 200th Straight Start Boosts “MNF” Ratings

ABC earned a 12.6/19 overnight Nielsen rating for Rams-Packers “MNF” last night, up 4% from a 12.1/18 for the comparable Giants-Bucs game last season. Last night’s game earned a 26.3/36 in St. Louis and a 45.5/63 in Milwaukee (THE DAILY).

RATINGS ROUND-UP: In Boston, Bill Griffith notes the 15.4/27 overnight for CBS’ late window Sunday, which featured Ravens-Patriots to 75% of the country, “was the best rating for a CBS window in 2004 and a 14[%] increase over the five other Sundays when CBS had the late national game.” Ravens-Patriots earned a 38.8/60 on Boston’s WBZ-CBS, the second-highest-rated regular-season game in Patriots history (BOSTON GLOBE, 11/30). ... In Palm Beach, Charles Elmore reports Sunday’s Dolphins-49ers game was the highest-rated game of the season in the West Palm Beach market, earning a 17.8 on WPEC-CBS. While the previous high was a 14.9 for Patriots-Steelers on October 31, WPEC Station Manager Donn Colee noted that hurricanes “made it impossible to take valid overnight ratings in the market from mid-September through Oct. 17” (PALM BEACH POST, 11/30). ... In Philadelphia, Shannon Ryan notes Eagles-Giants Sunday earned a season-high 36.7 on WTXF-Fox (PHILA. INQUIRER, 11/30).

CBS Nets Season High With Ravens-Patriots Matchup

"MNF” UPDATE: TELEVISION WEEK’s Jon Lafayette cites a source as saying that ABC will “likely renew” its “MNF” package, and ESPN “would re-up for its Sunday night games around Super Bowl time.” The source indicated that ABC “appears pressed to move quickly” following its loss of BCS rights (TELEVISION WEEK, 11/29 issue). In N.Y., Richard Sandomir reported that in the wake of the Terrell Owens/Nicollette Sheridan “MNF” intro, the scripts “for all future [‘MNF’] openings must be approved by ABC’s censors.” ESPN/ABC Sports President George Bodenheimer: “As we’ve said, we went too far, so we’re beefing up the number of eyeballs who see the pieces” (N.Y. TIMES, 11/29).

STEEL WHEELS: In Jacksonville, Bart Hubbuch reports Sunday night’s Steelers-Jaguars game “is sold out for television purposes and will be shown locally,” making it just the second regular-season Jaguars home game to air locally this season. Four others have been blacked out. Jaguars VP/Communications & Media Dan Edwards indicated that the team reached the blackout threshold of 59,000 non-premium seats “weeks ago –- thanks largely to the resurgent Steelers.” Jaguars officials “expect more than 5,000 Steelers fans” at the game (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 11/30). The Jaguars this season launched a direct-mail campaign to Steelers season-ticket holders offering ticket and hotel packages for Sunday’s game.