NFL SCORING BEST PRIMETIME RATINGS IN 17 YEARS

NBC’s Sunday Night Football is averaging the highest ratings for the NFL primetime package in 17 years — 22.7 million — last exceeded in 1996 when it was Monday Night Football and carried by ABC. Last Sunday the game between the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos averaged 26.9 million viewers, making it the most-watch October NFL primetime telecast since 1992. Its closest challenger for the week was CBS’s NCIS, which drew 18.8 million viewers, while CBS’s The Big Bang Theory placed third with 17.8 million. The end of the government shutdown did not seem to affect the ratings of the network newscasts significantly. NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams remained on top with 8.4 million viewers, followed by ABC World News with Diane Sawyer with 7.8 million viewers and the CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley with 6.3 million viewers. While NBC wound up the week as the most-watched network among the key 18-49 age group, CBS remained on top among total viewers with a 6.4 rating and a 10 share. NBC was a close second with a 5.8/9. ABC placed third with a 4.5/7, while Fox trailed with a 3.8/6.