A not so hot
season for NFL games
Ratings are off for three of the five carriers
By Toni Fitzgerald
Dec 14, 2011
The NFL is still by far the most-watched sport on television, but it's not having its best year ratings-wise.
Viewership is down on three of the league's five carriers, following ratings spikes last year, and ESPN's "Monday Night Football" hit a new low with last week's game.
The Dec. 5 contest between the San Diego Chargers and Jacksonville Jaguars, two sub-.500 teams, drew the smallest audience for a "MNF" game this season, averaging just 9.46 million.
It was the first time in several years that "MNF" drew fewer than 10 million viewers.
The matchup deserves a big part of the blame.
Though the most loyal of Chargers and Jaguars fans tuned in, with local market ratings for the game solid, it was a contest without playoff implications and with two squads that do not have a large national following.
Unfortunately for ESPN, that's been the story for much of the season. It has suffered through a series of undesirable games, including Indianapolis Colts-Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders versus the Denver Broncos before Tim Tebow became the latter's savior.
Those two games combined averaged just 21.9 million viewers. The record for a single "MNF" game, set two years ago, is 21.8 million viewers.
But ESPN isn't the only network to see NFL viewership drop this year. NBC and CBS are also off, though only slightly, under 2 percent apiece.
They, too, appear to have been hurt by some bad matchups.
The fact is that there are only a few compelling storylines in the NFL this year with a number of traditionally strong teams struggling, including the entire NFC East, arguably the most popular division.
That may not necessarily mean that the playoffs will see lower ratings, however. The Green Bay Packers remain undefeated, and if they can stay that way entering the postseason, ratings will rise.
But Tebow is the most exciting story in the NFL right now. The Broncos quarterback has won six games for the team since coming off the bench when the team was 1-4, and Denver is now leading the AFC West.
***
In cable ratings for the week ended Dec. 11:
Top five networks in primetime (18-49s): TBS, ESPN, USA< ABC Family, FX.
Top five networks in primetime (total viewers): USA, Disney Channel, ABC Family, ESPN, Discovery Channel.
Top five cable news networks in primetime (25-54): Fox News Channel, MSNBC, CNN, HLN, CNBC.
Top five cable news programs (total viewers): 1 Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Tuesday, 8 p.m.); 2. Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Wednesday, 8 p.m.); 3. Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Thursday, 8 p.m.); 4. Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Monday, 8 p.m.); 5. Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor" (Friday, 8 p.m.)
Top movie (18-49s): No movie during the week made the top 50 among 18-49s.
Top sporting event (total viewers): ESPN's "Monday Night Football: Chargers/Jaguars" (Monday, 8:30 p.m.) 9.47 million.
Shows making the top 10 among 18-34s, 18-49s and 25-54s: ESPN's "Monday Night Football: Chargers/Jaguars" (Monday, 7:30 p.m.); FX's "Sons of Anarchy" (Tuesday, 10 p.m.); A&E's "Storage Wars" (Tuesday, 10 p.m.); NFL Network's "NFL Football: Cleveland/Pittsburgh" (Thursday, 8:30 p.m.).
Show on the rise: A&E's "Storage Wars" Tuesday, 10 p.m. The reality show averaged 1.43 million viewers 18-34 for the 10 p.m. episode, up 16 percent from 1.23 million the previous week.
Show on the decline: VH1 "Love and Hip Hop," Monday, 8 p.m. VH1 didn't do the show any favors by moving it from 9 to 8 p.m. In its new timeslot the reality program averaged 1.74 million viewers 18-49, own 20 percent from the previous week's 2.18 million.
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Ranked on Household Rating
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
Rank |
Primetime |
Total Day |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1 |
USA |
2362 |
NICK |
1383 |
|
2 |
DSNY |
1857 |
DSNY |
1243 |
|
3 |
ESPN |
1807 |
USA |
1125 |
|
4 |
FAM |
1610 |
ADSM* |
1083 |
|
5 |
FOXN |
1421 |
NAN * |
1021 |
|
6 |
AEN |
1408 |
FOXN |
926 |
|
7 |
DISC |
1376 |
ESPN |
864 |
|
8 |
TBSC |
1350 |
TNT |
855 |
|
9 |
TNT |
1339 |
TOON |
781 |
|
10 |
HIST |
1281 |
FAM |
761 |
|
11 |
HALL |
1202 |
AEN |
754 |
|
12 |
ADSM |
1147 |
TBSC |
701 |
|
13 |
SYFY |
1146 |
HIST |
669 |
|
14 |
FX |
1092 |
DISC |
630 |
|
15 |
NAN |
977 |
FX |
622 |
|
16 |
FOOD |
975 |
HALL |
614 |
|
17 |
LIF |
919 |
FOOD |
557 |
|
18 |
HGTV |
857 |
HGTV |
537 |
|
19 |
BRAV |
804 |
LIF |
517 |
|
20 |
TLC |
800 |
MTV |
507 |
|
21 |
MTV |
797 |
TVLD |
498 |
|
22 |
AMC |
791 |
TRU |
487 |
|
23 |
TRU |
763 |
SYFY |
477 |
|
24 |
NFLN |
724 |
AMC |
442 |
|
25 |
TVLD |
681 |
TLC |
425 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
Rank
|
Program |
Net
|
(000) |
|
1 |
Chargers/Jaguars |
ESPN |
7045 |
|
2 |
Cleveland vs. Pittsburgh |
NFLN |
4562 |
|
3 |
The Closer |
TNT |
3774 |
|
4 |
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
3461 |
|
5 |
Storage Wars |
AEN |
3336 |
|
6 |
Heisman Trophy |
ESPN |
3294 |
|
7 |
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
3152 |
|
8 |
Teen Mom II Season 2 |
MTV |
3141 |
|
9 |
American Chopper |
DISC |
3121 |
|
10 |
Gold Rush |
DISC |
3082 |
|
11 |
NCIS |
USA |
3012 |
|
12 |
WWE Raw |
USA |
3006 |
|
13 |
Rizzoli & Isles |
TNT |
2993 |
|
14 |
Spongebob |
NICK |
2956 |
|
15 |
Sons Of Anarchy |
FX |
2918 |
|
16 |
Storage Wars Texas |
AEN |
2901 |
|
17 |
WWE Raw |
USA |
2894 |
|
18 |
Spongebob |
NICK |
2786 |
|
19 |
Spongebob |
NICK |
2703 |
|
20 |
Spongebob |
NICK |
2650 |
|
21 |
Jessie |
DSNY |
2638 |
|
22 |
Spongebob |
NICK |
2624 |
|
23 |
American Pickers |
HIST |
2623 |
|
24 |
Spongebob |
NICK |
2620 |
|
25 |
NCIS |
USA |
2607 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
TBSC |
616 |
ADSM* |
524 |
|
2
|
ESPN |
604 |
NAN * |
421 |
|
3
|
USA |
564 |
ESPN |
348 |
|
4
|
FAM |
556 |
TBSC |
335 |
|
5
|
FX |
555 |
NICK |
321 |
|
6
|
MTV |
529 |
MTV |
307 |
|
7
|
DISC |
527 |
USA |
301 |
|
8
|
ADSM |
465 |
FX |
300 |
|
9
|
AEN |
386 |
FAM |
267 |
|
10
|
CMDY |
351 |
DSNY |
249 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Teen Mom II Season 2 |
MTV |
2531 |
|
2
|
Chargers/Jaguars |
ESPN |
2356 |
|
3
|
Kourtney & Kim Take New York |
EN |
1681 |
|
4
|
Sons Of Anarchy |
FX |
1437 |
|
5
|
Family Guy |
ADSM |
1430 |
|
6
|
Storage Wars |
AEN |
1427 |
|
7
|
Cleveland vs. Pittsburgh |
NFLN |
1402 |
|
8
|
T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle |
VH1 |
1355 |
|
9
|
Family Guy |
ADSM |
1349 |
|
10
|
Family Guy |
ADSM |
1346 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
ESPN |
1172 |
ADSM* |
721 |
|
2
|
USA |
1141 |
ESPN |
611 |
|
3
|
DISC |
1116 |
NAN * |
600 |
|
4
|
FAM |
1111 |
USA |
579 |
|
5
|
TBSC |
1077 |
TBSC |
542 |
|
6
|
FX |
902 |
FAM |
497 |
|
7
|
AEN |
871 |
NICK |
496 |
|
8
|
HIST |
707 |
FX |
481 |
|
9
|
ADSM |
667 |
DISC |
466 |
|
10
|
MTV |
664 |
AEN |
459 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Chargers/Jaguars |
ESPN |
4798 |
|
2
|
Cleveland vs. Pittsburgh |
NFLN |
3319 |
|
3
|
Teen Mom II Season 2 |
MTV |
3088 |
|
4
|
American Chopper |
DISC |
3067 |
|
5
|
Sons Of Anarchy |
FX |
2673 |
|
6
|
Storage Wars |
AEN |
2651 |
|
7
|
Kourtney & Kim Take New York |
EN |
2396 |
|
8
|
Gold Rush |
DISC |
2330 |
|
9
|
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
2254 |
|
10
|
WWE Raw |
USA |
2160 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
|
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Rank
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA |
1180 |
USA |
560 |
|
2
|
ESPN |
1139 |
ESPN |
552 |
|
3
|
DISC |
1113 |
AEN |
471 |
|
4
|
FAM |
1039 |
ADSM* |
468 |
|
5
|
TBSC |
956 |
TNT |
453 |
|
6
|
AEN |
905 |
TBSC |
452 |
|
7
|
HIST |
783 |
DISC |
443 |
|
8
|
SYFY |
735 |
FAM |
441 |
|
9
|
FX |
729 |
NAN * |
415 |
|
10
|
TNT |
689 |
HIST |
385 |
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending Dec. 11 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Chargers/Jaguars |
ESPN |
4779 |
|
2
|
Cleveland vs. Pittsburgh |
NFLN |
3535 |
|
3
|
American Chopper |
DISC |
3106 |
|
4
|
Sons Of Anarchy |
FX |
2702 |
|
5
|
Storage Wars |
AEN |
2496 |
|
6
|
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
2473 |
|
7
|
Gold Rush |
DISC |
2388 |
|
8
|
Pawn Stars |
HIST |
2325 |
|
9
|
Storage Wars Texas |
AEN |
2140 |
|
10
|
WWE Raw |
USA |
2085 |
|
Source: Turner Research from Nielsen data |
|
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