The ratings for the “Monday Night Football” game on ESPN dropped to a near season-low Monday night, with a 7.5 in metered markets.
The showdown in Atlanta, that resulted in a Falcons 23-20 victory over the New York Giants, fell by 11 percent in the ratings from last week’s game when the Green Bay Packers beat the San Francisco 49ers, according to Deadline Tuesday. (RELATED: NFL Ratings Continue To Tumble After The Season Opener)
Keith Tandy #35 of the Atlanta Falcons runs out before the start of the first quarter against the New York Giants at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 22, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
That game ended up with a 4.1 rating among adults ages 18-49, with 11.9 million people watching.
In comparison, the Falcons-Giants game was down 5 percent from the matchup one year earlier at the same time when the Philadelphia Eagles’ beat the Washington Redskins. That game scored 11.3 million viewers and a 3.9 rating in the coveted demographic.
According to a description about Nielsen ratings, metered-market homes are one way to capture what people are watching:
In addition to capturing what channels viewers are watching on each television set in the home, our meters can identify who is watching and when, including ‘time-shifted’ viewing–the watching of recorded programming up to seven days after an original broadcast.
As previously reported, overall the ratings for the NFL games have been up when compared to last year. One possible reason could be, as noted by ESPN’s Darren Rovell, the significant decline in national anthem protests and the debate surrounding them.
Putting National Anthem discussion on permanent hold paid dividends. https://t.co/52r12OhfiX
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) October 22, 2018