Sports Ratings Report for Week of April 22-28

Sports Ratings Highlights for Week of April 22-28: NFL Draft Edition

More evidence of the dominance of the NFL: the first round of the NFL Draft was seen by 7.7 million people across ESPN and NFL Network and drew a 3.6 18-49 rating. Only one show on broadcast drew more 18-49 viewers on Thursday: The Big Bang Theory. It did better than the Syracuse/Marquette Elite Eight game, all but one Sweet 16 game, and all but two or three games from the NCAA Tournament’s first weekend, and the only better audiences ESPN has attracted for event programming so far this calendar year have been for college bowl games. The NFL Draft, which once puzzled Pete Roselle why ESPN would even want to televise it, wouldn’t be out of place on a broadcast network. Even Friday’s second-round coverage attracted more viewers than all but one game of the NBA Playoffs on cable for the week, and its 1.6 18-49 rating beat all but two shows on broadcast – though it may have been boosted by the likes of Geno Smith, Manti Te’o, and Matt Barkley still being on the board. And late-round coverage on Saturday did better than an NBA Playoff game later in the night, and they couldn’t all be watching to see the first two days rehashed ad nauseam. (Note: For Friday and Saturday, I took a weighted average of coverage on ESPN and ESPN2 before adding the NFLN numbers.)

Numbers compiled from a variety of sources, including TV by the Numbers, The Futon Critic, Sports Media Watch, and Son of the Bronx.

Vwr (mil)

HH

18-49

Time

Net

NFL Draft: Round 1 (combined)

7.721

5.0

3.6

4/25 8:00 PM

ESPN+
NFLN

NASCAR: Toyota Owners 400

6.1

3.7

4/27 7:30 PM

FOX

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Heat @ Bucks, Game 4

6

3.8

4/28 3:30 PM

ABC

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Knicks @ Celtics, Game 4

4.9

3.3

4/28 1:00 PM

ABC

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Lakers @ Spurs, Game 2

4.32

2.0

4/24 9:52 PM

TNT

NFL Draft: Rounds 2-3 (combined)

3.7

2.6

1.6

4/26 6:30 PM

ESPN/2
+NFLN

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Spurs @ Lakers, Game 4

3.513

1.5

4/28 7:09 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Celtics @ Knicks, Game 2

3.377

1.4

4/23 8:09 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Thunder @ Rockets, Game 3

3.257

2.1

1.4

4/27 9:49 PM

ESPN

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Nuggets @ Warriors, Game 4

3.196

1.4

4/28 9:35 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Grizzlies @ Clippers, Game 2

3.102

1.5

4/22 10:46 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Rockets @ Thunder, Game 2

3.055

1.3

4/24 7:09 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Bulls @ Nets, Game 2

2.988

1.3

4/22 8:09 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Knicks @ Celtics, Game 3

2.891

1.9

1.3

4/26 8:00 PM

ESPN

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Spurs @ Lakers, Game 3

2.881

2.0

1.3

4/26 10:40 PM

ESPN

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Warriors @ Nuggets, Game 2

2.869

1.4

4/23 10:46 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Clippers @ Grizzlies, Game 3

2.574

1.2

4/25 9:46 PM

TNT

NFL Draft: Rounds 4-7 (combined)

2.221

1.5

4/27 12:00 PM

ESPN/2
+NFLN

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Heat @ Bucks, Game 3

2.127

0.8

4/25 7:09 PM

TNT

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Pacers @ Hawks, Game 3

1.966

1.3

0.8

4/27 6:59 PM

ESPN

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Nuggets @ Warriors, Game 3

1.392

1.0

1.3

4/26 10:30 PM

ESPN2

UFC 159 Prelims

1.382

0.8

4/27 8:00 PM

FX

30 for 30: Elway to Marino

1.059

0.7

0.6

4/23 8:00 PM

ESPN

NBA Playoffs, First Round:
Bucks @ Heat, Game 2

0.764

0.5

4/23 7:30 PM

NBATV

Click More for the top 20 most viewed events for the last week of March, plus the top 25 most viewed events for the first quarter of the year.

Top 20 Most-Viewed Sports Events for Week of March 25-31: NCAA Tournament Second Weekend Edition

SBD did not report viewers for Duke/Louisville, so I’m assuming the numbers reported for the game’s overrun into primetime are the numbers for the whole game, as was the case during the NFL Playoffs. The same goes for UNC/Kansas in the first-three-months table below.

These numbers are delayed a month to wait for SportsBusiness Daily’s ratings roundup to come out of the paywall. Other numbers from the same sources as before. Numbers in gray interpolated based on the rest of the chart.

Vwr (mil)

HH

18-49

Time

Net

1

NCAA Tournament Elite Eight:
Duke v. Louisville

15.65

8.8

4.9

3/31 5:00 PM

CBS

2

NCAA Tournament Elite Eight:
Wichita State v. Ohio State

11.292

6.8

3/30 7:00 PM

CBS

3

NCAA Tournament Elite Eight:
Michigan v. Florida

9.4

5.7

3/31 2:15 PM

CBS

4

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
Syracuse v. Indiana

7.99

5.1

2.8

3/28 9:30 PM

CBS

5

NCAA Tournament Elite Eight:
Syracuse v. Marquette

7.6

4.2

3/30 4:15 PM

CBS

6

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
Duke v. Michigan State

7.108

4.6

2.3

3/29 9:46 PM

CBS

7

FIFA World Cup Qualifying:
Mexico v. United States

6.962

3.7

3/26 10:30 PM

ESPN+
UniMas

8

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
Florida Gulf Coast v. Florida

6.739

4.1

2.6

3/29 10:30 PM

TBS

9

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
Michigan v. Kansas

6.463

3.9

2.2

3/29 7:20 PM

TBS

10

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
Oregon v. Louisville

5.963

3.9

1.7

3/29 7:00 PM

CBS

11

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
Marquette v. Miami (FL)

5.77

3.8

1.7

3/28 7:00 PM

CBS

12

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
Arizona v. Ohio State

4.653

3.0

1.6

3/28 7:30 PM

TBS

13

NBA: Heat @ Bulls (end of streak)

3.896

2.5

1.7

3/27 8:05 PM

ESPN

14

(Liga MX: CD Guadalajara v. Club America)

2.571

1.2

3/31 9:55 PM

Telm’do

15

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16:
La Salle v. Wichita State

2.336

1.5

0.9

3/28 10:25 PM

TBS

16

MLB Opening Night:
Rangers @ Astros

2.268

1.4

0.9

3/31 7:50 PM

ESPN

17

NBA: Heat @ Magic (extend streak to 27)

1.921

1.3

0.8

3/25 7:00 PM

ESPN

18

Shell Houston Open: Final Round

1.9

1.3

3/31 3:00 PM

NBC

19

NBA: Clippers @ Mavericks

1.629

0.6

3/26 9:46 PM

TNT

20

Shell Houston Open: Third Round

1.6

1.2

3/30 3:00 PM

NBC

Top 25 Most-Viewed Sports Events Through the First Three Months of 2013:

Vwr (mil)

HH

18-49

Time

Net

1

Super Bowl XLVII:
Ravens v. 49ers

108.693

46.4

39.7

2/3 6:32 PM

CBS

2

AFC Championship Game:
Ravens @ Patriots

47.707

25.5

16.8

1/20 6:45 PM

CBS

3

NFC Championship Game:
49ers @ Falcons

42

24.2

1/20 3:00 PM

FOX

4

NFC Wild Card Game:
Seahawks @ Redskins

38.1

21.5

13.4

1/6 4:30 PM

FOX

5

AFC Divisional Game:
Texans @ Patriots

37.66

21.7

12.8

1/13 4:30 PM

CBS

6

AFC Divisional Game:
Broncos @ Ravens

35.3

1/12 4:30 PM

CBS

7

NFC Divisional Game:
Seahawks @ Falcons

32.1

19.3

1/13 1:00 PM

FOX

8

NFC Divisional Game:
Packers @ 49ers

30.9

16.9

1/12 8:00 PM

FOX

9

NFC Wild Card Game:
Vikings @ Packers

30.3

17.3

10.5

1/5 8:00 PM

NBC

10

AFC Wild Card Game:
Colts @ Ravens

29.6

18.1

1/6 1:00 PM

CBS

11

BCS Championship Game:
Alabama v. Notre Dame

26.38

15.1

9.2

1/7 8:25 PM

ESPN

12

AFC Wild Card Game:
Bengals @ Texans

23.6

14.4

1/5 4:30 PM

NBC

13

Rose Bowl:
Stanford v. Wisconsin

17.024

9.4

4.7

1/1 5:08 PM

ESPN

14

NASCAR: Daytona 500

16.7

9.9

2/24 1:00 PM

FOX

15

NCAA Tournament Elite Eight:
Duke v. Louisville

15.65

8.8

4.9

3/31 5:00 PM

CBS

16

Fiesta Bowl:
Oregon v. Kansas State

12.306

7.4

4.0

1/3 8:30 PM

ESPN

17

Pro Bowl

12.156

7.1

4.0

1/27 7:31 PM

NBC

18

Cotton Bowl:
Texas A&M v. Oklahoma

11.94

7.2

3.5

1/4 8:00 PM

FOX

19

NCAA Tournament Elite Eight:
Wichita State v. Ohio State

11.292

6.8

3/30 7:00 PM

CBS

20

NCAA Tournament Third Round:
North Carolina v. Kansas

11.24

4.0

3/24 5:00 PM

CBS

21

Capitol One Bowl:
Georgia v. Nebraska

11

6.6

1/1 1:00 PM

ABC

22

NCAA Tournament Third Round:
Temple v. Indiana

10.6

6.8

3/24 2:57 PM

CBS

23

Orange Bowl:
Florida State v. Northern Illinois

10.562

6.1

3.5

1/1 8:51 PM

ESPN

24

Sugar Bowl:
Florida v. Louisville

10.125

6.2

3.3

1/2 8:26 PM

ESPN

25

NCAA Tournament Elite Eight:
Michigan v. Florida

9.4

5.7

3/31 2:15 PM

CBS

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