FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, December 1st, 2015

PATRIOTS-BRONCOS OT THRILLER IS 5TH NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL GAME TO DRAW 25+ MILLION VIEWERS THIS SEASON

NBC’s SNF Viewership Up 9% from ’14 & Off to Best 12-Week Start for NFL Primetime Package in 19 Years

New England-Denver is NBC’s Most-Watched Thanksgiving Sunday Primetime Game Ever

STAMFORD, Conn. – December 1, 2015 – The Denver Broncos’ exciting 30-24 overtime victory against the previously unbeaten New England Patriots averaged 25.2 million viewers – marking the fifth NBC Sunday Night Football game to top 25 million viewers this season, according to Fast National data provided by The Nielsen Company. Last season, one NBC SNF game averaged 25 million viewers (Green Bay-Seattle in the “NFL Kickoff” game).

Viewership peaked at 27.3 million in the 11:45 p.m.-midnight ET quarter hour, as Denver’s C.J. Anderson (113 rushing yards, 2 TDs) ran 48 yards down the Broncos snow-covered sideline for the game-winning touchdown in overtime.

Sunday’s game (8:31 p.m.-12:02 a.m. ET) posted a 14.6/24 fast national rating and an 8.5 among Adults 18-49, up 11% and 5%, respectively, from last season’s Week 12 SNF game (13.1/22 rating and 8.1 for Cowboys-Giants).  The 25.2 million viewers for Patriots-Broncos is up 13% from last year’s game (22.4 million) and ranks as the most-watched Thanksgiving Sunday primetime game in NBC SNF history (since 2006).

The quarterback position was in the spotlight Sunday night as Denver’s Brock Osweiler made his first career home start for the injured Peyton Manning and passed for 270 yards and one touchdown in the victory. New England’s Tom Brady passed for three touchdowns, tying Hall of Famer Dan Marino for third place on the NFL’s all-time list (420 career TD passes).

In addition:

  • NBC’s Sunday Night Football is averaging 23.3 million viewers – the best viewership for the NFL’s broadcast primetime package at this point in the season in 19 years (23.7 million in 1996). SNF is averaging a 13.4/23 household rating – the best start for the broadcast primetime package in 16 years (13.7/23 in 1999). SNF viewership and HH rating are up 9% and 8%, respectively, from last year at this time (21.3 million viewers and 12.4/21).
  • Sunday Night Football is averaging an 8.3 in the Adult 18-49 demographic – up 6% from this point last season (7.8).
  • NBC’s Bears-Packers Thanksgiving night game averaged 27.8 million viewers, to rank as the network’s second-most watched NFL regular-season game since acquiring the SNF package in 2006 (behind only Dallas-Washington, Week 17 “win-and-in” game in 2012, 30.3 million).

TOP METERED MARKETS FOR PATRIOTS-BRONCOS:

1 Denver 48.6/70
2 Boston 44.0/65
3 Providence 32.3/48
4 Albuquerque 26.1/39
5 Las Vegas 23.1/36
6 Phoenix 21.4/32
7 Hartford 19.4/30
8 San Diego 18.9/31
9 Charlotte 18.4/30
T10. Kansas City 18.0/28
T10. Norfolk 18.0/28

DIGITAL: NBC Sports Live Extra’s presentation of Patriots-Broncos totaled 20.6 million live streaming minutes, up 109% from last year’s Week 12 game (9.9 million). The game also ranks as Live Extra’s second best non-Olympic authenticated event ever, behind only this season’s Week 2 Seahawks-Packers matchup (20.8 million).

Through 14 games, the 2015 NFL season has delivered 249 million live minutes on NBC Sports Live Extra, up 79% from 2014.

–NBC SPORTS GROUP–