NBC's SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL Posts It's Most Dominant Season Ever
By: Tori Hartshorn Dec. 28, 2017
NBC recently concluded its 12th season of Sunday Night Footballwith its most-dominant performance ever in average viewership and household rating vs. its competition, while pacing to finish as primetime's #1 TV show in all key metrics for a record seventh consecutive year- which will break its tie with AMERICAN IDOL for the most consecutive years atop the charts (since 1950), based on live plus same day data provided by The Nielsen Company.
Most Consecutive Years, #1 Ranked Show in Primetime, Since 1950
7 years in a row - SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (2011-12 through 2017-18; on pace)
6 years in a row - AMERICAN IDOL (2005-06 through 2010-11)
5 years in a row - The Cosby Show (1985-86 through 1989-90)...tied Cheers in '89-90
5 years in a row - All in THE FAMILY (1971-72 through 1975-76)
4 years in a row - Gunsmoke (1957-58 through 1960-61)
NBC Sunday Night Football's 2017 season was its most dominant ever in average viewership (+29%) and household rating (+20%) as compared to primetime's #2 show, and the most dominant since 2012 in the advertiser-coveted Adult 18-49 demo (+36%).
- SNF POSTS GREATEST VIEWERSHIP ADVANTAGE OVER PRIMETIME'S #2 SHOW IN SERIES HISTORY
NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL averaged 18.2 million TV viewers in 2017, which topped the #2 primetime show by 29% -- marking the most dominant season in NBC SNF history (since 2006 debut). SNF also beat the top scripted series (Big Bang Theory) by 30% in the fall (chart below).
Top Fall 2017 Primetime Programs, Viewership
| Program | Avg. Viewers | SNF Advantage |
| Sunday Night Football | 18.2 million | -- |
| CBS Thursday Night Football* | 14.1 million | 29% |
| Big Bang Theory | 14.037 million | 30% |
| NBC Thursday Night Football** | 14.036 million | 30% |
| NCIS | 13.0 million | 40% |
(Source: The Nielsen Company, Live + Same Day Viewing, Sept.7, 2017-Dec. 25, 2017; regularly-scheduled programs; excludes pre- and post-shows)
*5 CBS/NFLN telecasts; **6 NBC/NFLN telecasts
- SNF HAS ITS LARGEST-EVER HOUSEHOLD RATING ADVANTAGE
SNF averaged a 10.3/19 household rating in posting the series' largest-ever advantage (20%) over primetime's #2 show. SNF also easily topped the highest-rated scripted series (Big Bang Theory), with a 23% margin (chart below).
Top Fall 2017 Primetime Programs, U.S. HH Rating
| Program | U.S. HH Rating | SNF Advantage |
| Sunday Night Football | 10.3 | -- |
| CBS Thursday Night Football* | 8.6 | 20% |
| Big Bang Theory | 8.4 | 23% |
| NBC Thursday Night Football** | 8.1 | 27% |
| NCIS | 8.0 | 29% |
(Source: The Nielsen Company, Live + Same Day Viewing, Sept. 7, 2017-Dec. 25, 2017; regularly-scheduled programs; excludes pre- and post-shows)
*5 CBS/NFLN telecasts; **6 NBC/NFLN telecasts
- A DECADE OF DEMO DOMINANCE -- SNF WINS ADULT 18-49 DEMO FOR 10TH CONSECUTIVE FALL SEASON, WITH LARGEST MARGIN SINCE 2012
SNF averaged a 6.1 rating in the Adult 18-49 demographic, ranking as primetime television's #1 show in the advertiser-coveted demo for the 10th consecutive fall TV season. The 6.1 in the demo is 61% above The Walking Dead, primetime's highest-rated scripted series among Adults 18-49 (chart below). Last fall, SNFled THE WALKING DEAD by 21% in the demo.
SNF's 36% advantage over the #2 primetime show in the demo is its greatest margin in five years - since the 2012 season.
Top Fall 2017 Primetime Programs, Adult 18-49 Rating
| Program | Adult 18-49 Rating | SNF Advantage |
| Sunday Night Football | 6.1 | -- |
| CBS Thursday Night Football* | 4.5 | 36% |
| NBC Thursday Night Football** | 4.1 | 49% |
| The Walking Dead | 3.8 | 61% |
| Monday Night Football | 3.7 | 65% |
(Source: The Nielsen Company, Live + Same Day Viewing, Sept. 7, 2017-Dec. 25, 2017; regularly-scheduled programs; excludes pre- and post-shows)
*5 CBS/NFLN telecasts; **6 NBC/NFLN telecasts
Additional highlights from the 2017 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL season:
- The Total Audience Delivery (TAD) for the 2017 Sunday Night Footballseason on NBC and NBC Sports Digital was 18.4 million viewers. For SNF, NBC Sports Group's Total Audience Delivery measures broader consumption by calculating average minute viewing across broadcast and digital.
- Four NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL games this season topped 20 million viewers - doubling the combined total of all other primetime TV shows this fall (Games 6 and 7 of the World Series).
- NBC's season-long Sunday night FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA averaged 7.4 million viewers from 7:30-8:15 p.m. ET to continue its reign as sports' most-watched weekly studio show for the 12th consecutive year - a streak which began in FNIA's 2006 debut season. In addition, the 8-8:30 p.m. ET portion of FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA (including pre-kick coverage), averaged 10.4 million viewers, and a 3.3 rating among Adults 18-49, which would rank No. 6 among regularly-scheduled primetime shows in the demographic.
- In each of its 12 seasons (2006-17), SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL has averaged at least a 10.0 U.S. household rating (10.3 this season) and a 5.0 rating in the key Adult 18-49 demographic (6.1 this season). Among other primetime shows, only AMERICAN IDOL and GREY'S ANATOMY have posted a 10.0 HH rating and a 5.0 demo rating more than twice in that 12-year stretch, and neither has done so since 2011. (Nielsen Live + Same Day Data, 9/7/17-12/25/17; Excludes Pre- and Post-Game Shows)
- From Nov. 5 through Dec. 25, NBC Sports presented 15 national TV games in 51 days - an unprecedented stretch for any network. The run, which included games in NBC's SNF and TNF packages, began with the Nov. 5 Oakland Raiders-Miami Dolphins matchup on Sunday Night Footballand concluded with the Pittsburgh Steelers-Houston Texans Christmas Day special, which was part of the TNF package.
NBC SNF GAMES PRODUCE 8 OF 10 MOST-WATCHED PRIMETIME SHOWS THIS FALL
NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL accounted for eight of the 10 most-watched primetime telecasts between Sept. 7, 2017 and Dec. 25, 2017 (up from seven of the top 10 last year). In addition, SNF accounted for four of the six primetime telecasts in that span to average at least 20 million viewers (charts below).
Following are the programs topping 20 million primetime viewers this fall:
| Program | Telecasts with 20 Million Viewers |
| NBC Sunday Night Football | 4 |
| 2017 World Series | 2 |
Most-Watched Primetime Shows This Fall (Sept. 7, 2017-Dec. 25, 2017)
| Show, Date | Avg. Viewers |
| World Series on FOX (Astros-Dodgers, Game 7), 11/1 | 28.3 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Giants-Cowboys), 9/10 | 24.4 million |
| World Series on FOX (Astros-Dodgers, Game 6), 10/31 | 22.3 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Chiefs-Patriots), 9/7 | 21.8 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Eagles-Cowboys), 11/19 | 21.1 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Packers-Falcons), 9/17 | 20.2 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Eagles-Seahawks), 12/3 | 19.7 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Falcons-Patriots), 10/22 | 19.25 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Cowboys-Raiders), 12/17 | 19.19 million |
| NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL (Packers-Steelers), 11/26 | 19.0 million |
Source: Nielsen Live + Same Day Data, 9/7/17-12/25/17; Excludes Pre- and Post-Shows
SNF AVERAGE (P2+) VIEWERSHIP RANK AMONG PRIMETIME SHOWS:
Fall TV Season Full TV Season
| 2017 | No. 1 Show | 1st (through 12/25/17) |
| 2016 | No. 1 Show | 1st |
| 2015 | No. 1 Show | 1st |
| 2014 | No. 1 Show | 1st |
| 2013 | No. 1 Show | 1st |
| 2012 | No. 1 Show | 1st |
| 2011 | No. 1 Show | 1st |
| 2010 | No. 1 Show | 3rd |
| 2009 | No. 2 Show | 4th |
| 2008 | No. 5 Show | 8th |
| 2007 | No. 7 Show | 8th |
| 2006 | No. 7 Show | 9th |
Source: The Nielsen Company, Live + Same Day Viewing
SNF SETS STREAMING RECORD: NBC Sports Digital set season SNF records as 6.9 million unique users (up 12% from 6.1 million in '16) consumed 689 million live streaming minutes (up 13% from 612 million) across NBCSports.com, the NBC Sports app, and NFL Mobile from Verizon. The 689 million minutes total to date exceeds all prior full seasons of NFL games on NBC, which included playoff games and two Super Bowls. This year's total is more impressive considering that there is no Week 17 SNF game this season.
SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL TOP 30 METERED MARKETS - FULL 2017 SEASON:
For the first time since 2012, Milwaukee was the highest rated SNF market. Denver was the top-rated SNFmarket for the prior three seasons (2014-16). New Orleans was the highest-rated market in 2013 as well as in the 2010 and 2011 seasons.
| 1. Milwaukee | 17.3/27 |
| T2. New Orleans | 17.1/24 |
| T2. Richmond | 17.1/26 |
| 4. Denver | 16.7/29 |
| 5. Seattle | 16.3/28 |
| 6. Norfolk | 16.0/25 |
| 7. Kansas City | 15.6/25 |
| 8. Philadelphia | 15.5/25 |
| 9. Pittsburgh | 15.4/23 |
| 10. Albuquerque | 15.0/24 |
| 11. Dallas | 14.3/24 |
| T12. Minneapolis | 14.2/25 |
| T12. Providence | 14.2/23 |
| 14. Baltimore | 13.5/23 |
| T15. Washington, D.C. | 13.4/25 |
| T15. Buffalo | 13.4/21 |
| 17. Las Vegas | 13.3/22 |
| 18. Austin | 13.2/24 |
| 19. Boston | 13.1/22 |
| 20. San Antonio | 12.8/21 |
| 21. San Diego | 12.4/22 |
| T22. Memphis | 12.3/17 |
| T22. Sacramento | 12.3/22 |
| 24. Portland | 12.0/22 |
| 25. Phoenix | 11.8/21 |
| 26. Houston | 11.7/20 |
| 27. Charlotte | 11.6/19 |
| T28. Raleigh | 11.5/19 |
| T28. Nashville | 11.5/18 |
| T30. Atlanta | 11.3/19 |
| T30. Greensboro | 11.3/18 |
NBC will televise an NFL Wild Card Playoff game on the weekend of January 6-7, 2018, followed by an NFL Divisional Playoff game on the weekend of January 13-14, before presenting its 19th SUPER BOWL - SUPER BOWL LII on Sunday, February 4, 2018.
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