> At a Glance
> – The NFL averaged 18.7 million viewers per game this season, the second-highest mark since 1988
> – All five weekly TV packages grew, with Thursday Night Football on Prime Video up 16%
> – CBS scored the biggest average at 21.25 million, powered by a historic Thanksgiving game
> – Why it matters: The surge shows the league’s widening reach and hints at stronger revenue and ratings momentum for networks and streamers
The NFL closed its regular season drawing 18.7 million viewers per telecast, up 10% from last year and just shy of the 1989 all-time record, according to figures released by the league and Nielsen.
The Viewership Boom
A revised Nielsen counting method-adding out-of-home viewing in every state except Hawaii and Alaska plus smart-TV data-helped lift the total. Still, every one of the league’s weekly windows climbed.
- Thursday Night Football on Prime Video leapt 16% to 15.33 million, its best mark since the package began in 2006
- CBS rose 11% to 21.25 million, the network’s best regular-season showing on record
- NBC’s Sunday Night Football added 9%, averaging 23.5 million and keeping its 15-year streak as the top primetime show
- ESPN/ABC’s Monday Night Football also gained 9%, hitting 15.8 million for its 21-game slate
- Fox rounded out the gains with a 6% bump to 19.63 million, its best since 2015
Record Breakers
CBS aired the most-watched regular-season game ever when 57.2 million tuned in to see the Chiefs visit the Cowboys on Thanksgiving. That single contest generated 11.7 billion viewing minutes, topping Netflix’s Stranger Things for the month.
Prime Video’s exclusive Christmas-night showdown between the Broncos and Chiefs averaged 21.06 million, the streamer’s largest NFL audience to date.
Streaming Spillover
The league’s streaming packages kept growing too:
- Peacock viewing rose 16% in October
- Paramount+ climbed 8% from September
- Prime Video captured 6.4% of all Thursday TV usage
Season Highs by Network
| Network | Avg. Viewers | Top Game |
|---|---|---|
| CBS | 21.25M | Chiefs-Cowboys 57.2M |
| NBC | 23.5M | Cowboys-Eagles 28.3M |
| Fox | 19.63M | Packers-Lions 47.7M |
| ESPN/ABC | 15.8M | Lions-Ravens 22.8M |
| Prime Video | 15.33M | Broncos-Chiefs 21.06M |
Key Takeaways
- NFL ratings are on a three-year climb, up 7% from 2023 and 10% from last season
- The league owns the most-watched show in primetime for the 15th straight year
- Streaming exclusives are finding bigger audiences as fans adapt
- CBS, NBC, Fox and ESPN/ABC all posted multi-year highs
Networks are now banking on the momentum carrying into the playoffs and February’s Super Bowl, which is expected to finish as the season’s single most-watched program.
