Monday was a good night to be Drew Brees and not such a great night to be the NFL or ESPN.
As the New Orleans Saints quarterback was elevated to the leagues all-time leader in passing yards after a quick second quarter move on Monday Night Football last night, the NOLA teams 43-19 demolition of the Washington Redskins was a ratings fumble.
The primetime match-up last night on the Disney-owned sports cabler snared a 7.3 result in metered market ratings.
Thats down 20% in the early metrics from the still unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs 27-23 MNF victory over the Denver Broncos on October 1. While steady with the comparable game between Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears on October 9, 2017, last nights MNF is a season low for this year so far.
It should be noted that the Vikings 20-17 win over the Windy City team was also a season low for MNF at the time last year. It should also be noted that last weeks MNF went on to have total final numbers of 13.2 million viewers and a 4.6 rating among adults 18-49.
Now, technically, last nights Saints vs. Redskins game dipped 4% from the Broncos 24-21 win over the LA Chargers on September 13. However, that MNF battle was the second game of the ESPN NFL flagship shows doubleheader and hence out of the norm ratingswise. To further the comparison, the first game of this seasons MNF opener saw the Vikings 29-19 win over the Saints grab a 7.8 in metered market ratings.
Also, facing a full night on the Big 4 with the likes of The Voice and Dancing With The Stars, the mere 4% uptick that the Saints vs. Redskins game had over that Vikings vs. Bears battle of 2017 is indicative of the precarious state that NFL ratings find themselves in the past few years. An overall tightening environment where the old rules are falling away and the once impenetrable fortresses of live sports are under attack like the dramas and sitcoms that make up the rest of primetime on broadcast and cable.
On the other hand, it sure is good to be Drew Brees right now, ratings or not:
The new of passing yards. pic.twitter.com/C5x2Ph5z4E
— ESPN (@espn) October 9, 2018
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