TV Ratings: Sunday TV viewers are bullish on Bears-Packers

Sunday Night Football helps NBC dominate the ratings in all measures

By Daniel Fienberg Monday, Sep 14, 2009 12:23 PM

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers

Credit: Jim Pritsching/AP

Fast National ratings for Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009.

NBC's regular season Sunday Night Football premiere, a tense showdown between the Packers and Bears, dominated the evening's ratings in all key measures.

Among adults 18-49, NBC averaged a 6.2 rating, far ahead of the NFL-aided 3.4 rating for FOX. CBS was a distant third in the key demographic, followed by the 1.3 rating for ABC and The CW's 0.5 rating.

Overall, NBC averaged an estimated 15.5 million viewers to go with a 9.4 rating/15 share. FOX was, again, a distant second with a 4.6/7. CBS' 4.0/6 and the 2.7/4 for ABC followed. The CW trailed with a 0.8/1 for the night.

FOX started the night in first with a 7.4/13 for NFL overrun (and non-football coverage on the left side of the country). CBS' "60 Minutes" was second with a 5.5/10. NBC's "Football Night in America" took third overall, beating the 3.6/6. The end of The CW's "Benny & Joon" was fifth.

NBC grabbed first at 8 p.m. with a 10.9/17 for the Chicago/Green Bay game. CBS had a 5.4/9 for "Big Brother," impacted in no small degree by NFL overrun. FOX's "King of the Hill" finale got an NFL boost and did a 3.6/6 (numbers that will probably go way down when final figures are released). ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" was fourth, while The CW's second reairing of the "Vampire Diaries" pilot did a 0.9/1.

Sunday Night Football had an 11.7/18 for NBC in the 9 p.m. hour. CBS' "There Goes the Neighborhood" was second with a 2.8/4, nipping FOX's "Family Guy" and "American Dad" and the 2.6/4 for ABC's "Shark Tank." The CW's second "Melrose Place" pilot reairing had a 0.6/1.

NBC stayed in first at 10 p.m. with a 10.3/17. CBS' "There Goes the Neighborhood" was down in its second hour, still beating the 1.6/3 for ABC's "Defying Gravity."

All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change, particularly in the case of live events.

Daniel Fienberg
Executive Editor

A long-time member of the TCA Board and a longer-time blogger of "American Idol," Dan Fienberg writes about TV, except for when he writes about movies or sometimes writes about the Red Sox. But never music. He would sound stupid talking about music.