The NFL averaged 32.4 million viewers for the four divisional playoff games this weekend, up 6% from last season, which was the least-viewed divisional round since ’09. However, the four games this year are down from 36 million viewers two years ago. NBC and Fox were up on Saturday, but Sunday was a mixed bag, as Fox saw gains for Saints-Eagles and CBS was lower with the Patriots’ blowout win over the Chargers. Fox drew 38.2 million viewers in the late Sunday afternoon window, up 7% from Vikings-Saints last year (35.6 million viewers). It is the best late Sunday divisional window since Broncos-Steelers in ’16 (43 million). The game this year also drew an average minute audience of 681,735 viewers, passing Saturday’s Rams-Cowboys game as Fox Sports Digital’s most-streamed NFL Playoff game on record. Meanwhile, CBS drew 29.2 million viewers for Patriots-Chargers, marking the least-viewed early Sunday divisional game since at least the early part of the '00s. This year was the first time since '05 that the 1:00pm ET Sunday divisional window dipped below 30 million viewers (Austin Karp, THE DAILY).
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NFL DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF WEEKEND AUDIENCE TREND
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YEAR
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NETWORKS
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AVG. VIEWERS (000)
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'19
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NBC, CBS, Fox (x2)
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32,414
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'18
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NBC, Fox, CBS (x2)
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30,455
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'17
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NBC, CBS, Fox (x2)
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36,016
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'16
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NBC, Fox, CBS (x2)
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36,163
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'15
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NBC, CBS, Fox (x2)
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37,789
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LOTS OF EYEBALLS: Patriots-Chargers earned a 45.9 local rating in Boston, the "highest rating of the season for the Patriots." The game also was the "highest-rated divisional-round game for the Patriots" since the '12 season (BOSTON GLOBE, 1/15). In K.C., Blair Kerkhoff notes a winter storm "knocked out power for tens of thousands" around the city on Saturday during Chiefs-Colts on NBC. However, the game still delivered a 56.1 rating in K.C. Indianapolis was "second in local market ratings at 44.5" (K.C. STAR, 1/15).
JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED: In DC, Jerry Brewer writes the "most entertaining NFL season in recent memory is about to get better." Both conference title games "represent the best of a game undergoing a stunning modernization process." The NFL "lucked into this season." It has been "full of personality and high-caliber performance" (WASHINGTON POST, 1/15). In Boston, Tara Sullivan writes the NFL had been "written off everywhere from the Oval Office to the office water cooler." But the NFL "always prevails." Sullivan: "Just look at the story lines for next weekend. Forget about losing steam, the league is gaining more traction than ever" (BOSTON GLOBE, 1/15). In DC, Deron Snyder writes the NFL's final games of the season "figure to be pleasing" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 1/15).
