Despite rebounding from a 4-12 record last season to win the NFC West this year, the Rams were "worse in television ratings" in '17, according to Dan Caesar of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. The Rams drew an 8.0 local rating in L.A. this season, down from a 9.0 last year. By contrast their "worst-rated season" in St. Louis averaged a 15.8, which came in '98. That was their "fourth year in town and was for a 4-12 season that dropped the team’s record to 22-42 since moving to Missouri." Even in '09, when they were 1-15, they drew a 16.2 rating in St. Louis. But Rams ratings in L.A., as "horrendous as they have been, are lofty compared to those of the city’s newest NFL team." The Chargers arrived in L.A. this season and "generated a minuscule 6.0 rating" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 1/5). In San Diego, Jay Posner noted ratings in San Diego for the Chargers "declined" more than 40% in the first season after the team's move to L.A. The 16 games averaged a 14.2 in San Diego, nearly 42% "lower than the average of 24.4" for the '16 season and almost 47% lower than the five-year average of 26.7 for '12-16. From '04-'16, the average season rating for local Chargers telecasts "ranged between" a 24.4 ('16) and a 31.6 ('10). Even with the decline, throughout the season Chargers telecasts "earned higher ratings than other NFL games shown in San Diego, even in head-to-head matchups" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 1/3).
I'VE SEEN BETTER DAYS: In Houston, David Barron notes Texans games locally drew an "average audience" of 663,312, down by more than 25% from 892,312 for the regular season in '16. But Texans VP/Broadcast and play-by-play voice Marc Vandermeer is "looking for better days and notes that even with a bad ending, traffic on the team's website was up" by about 10%. He said, "There's a ton of curiosity about where we are going with the general manager's search and with Deshaun Watson's health and all that. (2018) has the potential to be our best year as far as broadcasting and digital performance" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 1/5).
