Amazon Prime’s much-awaited Buffalo Bills-Miami Dolphins matchup on Thursday Night Football turned out to be a dud on the field, but proved a ratings winner for the streaming service.
The Bills easily handled the Dolphins, 31-10, but the game boasted an intriguing storyline late, as Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered another concussion.
Amazon Prime announced Friday that the game attracted a peak audience of 18.09 million viewers, a TNF record. It averaged 14.96 million viewers, making it the third most-watched TNF game.
For some perspective, Amazon Prime reported the average viewership topped TNF’s 2023 season average by 26% (14.96 million viewers compared to 11.86 million).
🏈 Last night’s @NFLonPrime season-opener earned big viewership, averaging 14.96M viewers and attracting the streamer’s largest peak audience to date! 📈 pic.twitter.com/vupJuDQbfJ
— PrimeVideoSportsPR (@PrimeSportsPR) September 13, 2024
In addition, TNF’s pregame show, TNF Tonight, averaged 1.88 million viewers, setting a new record. That show likely benefitted from airing reporter Taylor Rooks’ interview with Tyreek Hill about his recent encounter with police officers, an incident that sparked a national debate. The TNF Tonight panel then gave their thoughts on the issue.
.@TaylorRooks sits down with @cheetah to discuss Sunday’s incident with police. pic.twitter.com/hP5oTpe7ZD
— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) September 12, 2024
Play-by-play announcer Al Michaels and analyst Kirk Herbstreit talked about Hill’s ordeal, with Michaels calling video of the incident, “unbelievable in a way.”
Amazon Prime has high hopes for this year’s TNF ratings. Many observers, including Michaels, have noted the improved slate of games. The Bills-Dolphins matchup certainly did not disappoint, even if the game failed to meet expectations on the field.
