Fast National ratings for Sunday, September 16, 2012.
The San Francisco 49ers topped the Detroit Lions and helped NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” easily beat the primetime competition, which included an NFL overrun boosted night for CBS and FOX.
Among adults 18-49, NBC won Sunday night with a 6.5 rating, far ahead of CBS’ 2.5 rating and the 2.0 rating for FOX in the key demographic. ABC averaged a 0.7 key demo rating.
Overall, NBC averaged an estimated 15.72 million viewers and a 9.6 rating/15 share for Sunday primetime. CBS was a distant second with 8.99 million viewers and a 5.7/8, with FOX a distant third with a 2.6/4 and 4.52 million viewers. ABC was fourth with 3.51 million viewers and a 2.3/4.
7 p.m. – CBS started primetime in first with 16.08 million viewers and a 5.0 rating among adults 18-49 for NFL overrun and the start of “60 Minutes.” NBC’s “Football Night in America” was second wit 9.74 million viewers and a 3.9 key demo rating. FOX’s repeats of “American Dad” and “The Cleveland Show” (plus clear NFL boosting in some markets) averaged 4.99 million viewers and a 2.0 key demo rating. ABC’s repeat of “America’s Funniest Home Videos” was fourth with 4.85 million viewers and a 0.9 key demo rating.
8 p.m. – The start of NBC’s game between the Lions and 49ers averaged 18.08 million viewers and a 7.3 rating among adults 18-49 to dominate the 8 p.m. hour. CBS’ “60 Minutes” and “Big Brother” averaged 10.45 million viewers and a 2.7 key demo rating in second. FOX was third with 4.38 million viewers and a 2.0 key demo rating for repeats of “The Simpsons.” ABC’s repeat of “Revenge” trailed with 3.1 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – “Sunday Night Football” improved to 19.35 million viewers and a 7.9 key demo rating in its second hour for NBC. CBS was still second with the end of “Big Brother” and the start of a “The Good Wife” repeat averaging 5.44 million viewers and a 1.6 key demo rating for third. FOX’s repeats of “Family Guy” were second in the key demo with a 2.0 rating and third overall with 4.38 million. ABC’s “Revenge” repeat was fourth with 3.06 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – NBC closed primetime in first with 15.71 million viewers and a 6.9 rating among adults 18-49 for the Detroit-San Francisco showdown. CBS’ “Good Wife” and “Mentalist” repeats averaged 3.98 million viewers and a 0.7 key demo rating, while ABC’s “Revenge” repeat averaged 3.04 million viewers and a 0.7 key demo rating.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change, particularly in the case of live events.