Viewership Reaches an All-Time High for the NFL

By Jack Nevins

After concluding week one of the NFL, Roger Goodell and the hype leading up to kickoff did not disappoint. The NFL seems to be doing something right, as viewership reached an all-time high, reaffirming football’s spot at the center of American sports culture.

Week one of the NFL kicked off with the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday Night Football, producing a nail-biting finish as the Eagles came out on top 24-20. This set the tone for the remainder of the week. The bright lights continued to shine in primetime—on Sunday Night Football, Josh Allen led his offense to 16 unanswered points against the Baltimore Ravens, guiding Buffalo to a 41-40 comeback victory capped by a game-winning field goal. The show did not stop there, as Monday Night Football gave us an NFC North clash between the Chicago Bears and the Minnesota Vikings. Minnesota, down 17-6, stormed back to beat the Bears 27-24 at home.

The opening slate of NFL games drew some of the strongest early-season ratings in league history. Sunday Night Football on NBC averaged 24.7 million viewers, making it the second-most-watched regular-season game in the history of the network. It was also the most-viewed week one game since 2022. CBS also posted huge numbers, averaging 20.38 million viewers, just shy of its all-time week one record of 23.9 million. It was still the best opening-week performance on the network since 1998, showing that even nearly three decades later, football continues to bring fans together in record numbers. Fox followed along, attracting 17.9 million viewers across its broadcasts. That marked the network’s highest week-one viewership in 10 years, a clear sign that interest in football remains strong across all time slots.