SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL Earns Highest Ratings for 12/19

Here are the highlights of the 18 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

NBC (17.51 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 6.1, #1) was once again the ratings king on Sunday with its "Sunday Night Football" (20.84 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 8.5, #1) coverage. Leading off the night were its usual mix of "Football Night in America #1" (8.29 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.7, #8), "Football Night in America #2" (11.44 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 4.1, #T4) and "Football Night in America #3" (16.12 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 5.6, #3).CBS (15.67 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.4, #2) then had to settle for second place with its mix of "NFL Overrun" (24.70 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.1, #2), "60 Minutes" (17.93 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 4.1, #T4), the two-hour "Survivor: Nicaragua" (13.39 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 4.1, #T4) finale and the "Survivor: Nicaragua Reunion" (11.21 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 3.5, #7).

Compared with a year ago (13.86 million viewers; adults 18-49: 4.4), the "Survivor" finale was off a modest 3.39% in viewers and 6.82% in adults 18-49.

Next up was FOX (4.62 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.0, #3) and its combination of "NFL Overrun/The Simpsons" (4.22 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 1.6, #15), "The Simpsons" (4.23 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 1.8, #13), "The Simpsons" (5.10 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 2.2, #10), "The Cleveland Show" (4.37 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T11) and a one-hour "Family Guy" (4.91 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 2.3, #9).

And finally, repeats of "The Santa Clause 2" (5.96 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.7, #14) and "The Santa Clause 3" (6.38 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.9, #T11) on ABC (6.17 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.8, #4) rounded out the evening.

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): 60 Minutes (2.50%), Sunday Night Football (0.00%).

Here are the highlights of the 17 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (12/20/09):

"Sunday Night Football" (15.78 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 5.6, #3) once again put NBC (14.04 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.9, #1) on Sunday. Leading into the game were "Football Night in America #1" (5.72 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 1.8, #15), "Football Night in America #2" (6.89 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 2.3, #13) and "Football Night in America #3" (12.47 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 4.2, #5).

FOX (10.79 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 4.4, #2) then claimed the silver with its mix of "NFL Overrun" (20.10 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.1, #1), "The OT" (19.08 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 7.0, #2) and repeats of "The Simpsons" (8.22 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 3.8, #6), "The Cleveland Show" (5.92 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 2.8, #10), "Family Guy" (6.29 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 3.1, #9) and "American Dad" (5.14 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 2.5, #T11).

Next up was CBS (13.34 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.8, #3) with its own "NFL Overrun" (12.89 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.5, #T11) followed by a new "60 Minutes" (13.65 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 3.2, #8), the two-hour season finale of "Survivor: Samoa" (13.86 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 4.4, #4) and the "Survivor: Samoa Reunion" (11.11 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 3.5, #7).

And finally, repeats of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (7.00 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.7, #16), "The Santa Claus 3: The Escape Clause" (7.06 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.9, #14) and "Desperate Housewives" (4.02 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 1.2, #17) on ABC (6.28 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.7, #4) rounded out the evening.

Source: Nielsen Media Research