The Seahawks and Packers played a compelling game last night in Seattle, and viewers apparently agreed.
The 27-24 Seattle win included multiple scores down the stretch, a cowardly coaching move from Mike McCarthy, and a trademark Russell Wilson touchdown drive to take the lead late in the fourth quarter.
(That’s not figurative, either. It’s Russell Wilson. He’s probably tried to trademark it, and he has a few potential hashtag slogans he’d like to run by you, if you have a few minutes.)
The overnight rating reflected the interest, as the game drew a reported 11.9, one of the best marks for a Thursday Night Football game in a long time.
Packers-Seahawks nailbiter last night drew an 11.9 overnight rating, marking Fox's best "Thursday Night Football" game so far this season. Also best "TNF" overnight since Cowboys-Vikes in Week 13 in 2016 on NBC. Best for any Fox Thursday night telecast in at least 5 years
— Austin Karp (@AustinKarp) November 16, 2018
As was pointed out, that’s a very big number for the timeslot:
So let's look again at why Fox paid big for "Thursday Night Football." In primetime alone last night (8:00-11:00pm), Fox had an 11.1 overnight rating. That was 118% higher than No. 2 CBS at a 5.1. ABC had 3.7. NBC had 2.2. NFL just owns the night
— Austin Karp (@AustinKarp) November 16, 2018
Fox is paying more than half a billion dollars a year for Thursday Night Football, but they have primetime inventory to fill, and their renewed emphasis on sports is obviously anchored by their NFL package. Last night’s contest featured two teams battling to stay a part of the playoff picture and it was actually exciting, both things that have been in short supply on Thursday night these past few years.
With a week off for Thanksgiving, Fox only has three Thursday Night Football games remaining (TNF disappears after Week 14, replaced by Saturday games in December.) Those contests might not quite measure up to last night’s game, but on the whole this year has been a very promising start to a deal that looks good for both sides.
