Fast National ratings for Sunday, December 15, 2013.
NBC’s Sunday Night Football showdown between the Steelers and Bengals helped the network to an overall win on Sunday night, but NFL overrun and a strong showing by “Family Guy” helped FOX eke out a slim win among young viewers.
There was a lot of competition on Sunday night, with CBS’ “Survivor: Blood vs. Water” finale doing OK numbers and leading to a drop for “Once Upon a Time.” We’ll have to stay tuned for cable numbers as well, particularly the drama finales on Showtime.
Note, of course, that FOX had NFL overrun and CBS also had chunks of NFL overrun in several markets, so nearly all of these numbers are likely to shift a bit.
On to those preliminary numbers…
Among adults 18-49, FOX averaged a 4.1 rating for Sunday night, edging out the 4.0 rating for NBC in the key demographic. There was a big drop to CBS’ 2.2 key demo rating and to ABC’s 1.4 key demo rating for Sunday.
Overall, though, NBC averaged an estimated 12.2 million viewers and a 7.5 rating/12 share for Sunday primetime, topping the nearly 11 million viewers and 6.4/10 for FOX for the night. CBS was a close third with 9.66 million viewers and a 5.7/9, far ahead of the 3.6/6 and 5.72 million viewers for ABC.
7 p.m. – NFL overrun and post-game averaged 20.44 million viewers and a 6.7 rating among adults 18-49 to help FOX dominate the 7 p.m. hour. CBS’ “60 Minutes” was second overall with 10.61 million viewers and third with a 1.7 key demo rating. ABC’s “America’s Funniest Home Videos” was third with 6.65 million viewers and fourth with a 1.4 key demo rating. On NBC, “Football Night in America” averaged 6.06 million viewers and a 1.9 key demo rating.
8 p.m. – The start of the football game between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh averaged 14.38 million viewers and a 4.6 rating among adults 18-49 to lead NBC in the 8 p.m. hour. CBS’ “Survivor: Blood vs. Water” was second with 10.39 million viewers and third with a 2.6 key demo rating. FOX finished second in the key demo and third overall with “The Simpsons” (8.38 million and a 3.5 key demo) and “Bob’s Burgers” (5.53 million and a 2.4 key demo). On ABC, “Once Upon a Time” was fourth with 6.42 million viewers and a 1.9 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – Sunday Night Football averaged 15.37 million viewers and a 5.1 rating among adults 18-49 for NBC in the 9 p.m. hour. CBS’ “Survivor” finale slipped to 9.94 million viewers and a 2.5 key demo rating in its second hour. ABC’s “Revenge” averaged 6.14 million viewers for third and a 1.5 key demo rating for third. FOX was fourth overall and second in the key demo with “Family Guy” (6.27 million and a 3.0 key demo rating) and “American Dad” (4.94 million and a 2.4 key demo rating).
10 p.m. – NBC’s football game closed primetime with 12.98 million viewers and a 4.5 rating among adults 18-49 for an easy 10 p.m. win. CBS’ “Survivor” reunion show and the announcement of the season’s winner averaged 7.04 million viewers and a 1.9 key demo rating in second. ABC’s “Betrayal” was actually up in total viewers with 3.685 million and flat with a 0.8 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.