The kings of American TV returned over the weekend as the NFL kicked off the 2024 season with record ratings for games Thursday, Friday and Sunday.
Thursday’s opener between the defending NFL champion Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens drew 29.2 million viewers for NBC. The network reported that the game was its most-watched Week 1 game in history. The Chiefs, who won last February’s Super Bowl, beat the Ravens 27-20.
The hot start continued Friday when the Philadelphia Eagles faced off against the Green Bay Packers in Brazil for a game streaming exclusively on NBC’s Peacock. The international game averaged 14 million viewers, the second-most for any event on the streamer behind a wild-card playoff game last season. The Eagles won 34-29.
Fox joined the action Sunday for “America’s Game of the Week” between the Dallas Cowboys and Cleveland Browns. Dallas dominated, as did viewership at 23.8 million. The broadcasting debut of former quarterback Tom Brady led Fox to a 46% increase in viewers over last year’s opener.
Sunday’s games concluded with an overtime thriller between the Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions on NBC that brought in an average audience of 22.7 million. The Lions won 26-20.
The success of Thursday and Sunday’s games gave NBC its best opening NFL weekend since 2015, according to Front Office Sports.
The NFL dominated ratings in 2023 with 93 of the 100 most-watched broadcasts. The league is on pace to continue its reign this season after a strong opening weekend, though experts note that the upcoming presidential election could lure some viewers away from the gridiron.
In the lead-up to the 2016 election, the NFL’s viewership numbers dropped by 14% as viewers turned their attention to the political arena. The ratings rebounded by the end of the season.
• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.