Local viewership for the NFL through Week 12 is in, and the New England Patriots are seeing the biggest increases, while the New York Giants are the biggest ratings surprise.
According to John Ourand of Puck, the Patriots average 616,000 viewers in the Boston market, a 34% increase over last season. The Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears have also seen increases, 8% and 12%, respectively.
Seemingly the biggest surprise increase is the New York Giants. Despite again playing for the No. 1 draft pick, Giants viewership is up 20% in New York and averages 638,000 viewers. Overall, 14 teams have seen an increase over last year.
The New York Jets, amid another dismal season, are the biggest viewership losers, down 29%. They average roughly 200,000 fewer viewers per game in New York compared to the Giants.
Other notable viewership decreases come from the Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys. Following disappointing seasons, the Chiefs are down 6% and the Cowboys are down 2%. Overall, 17 teams have seen local viewership decreases from last year. Last season, 21 teams saw decreases.
The Washington Commanders’ viewership is essentially flat compared to last season. That comes despite the fact that the Commanders have long been out of playoff contention and QB Jayden Daniels has missed time due to injury.
Ourand also noted that in Los Angeles, the Chargers average slightly more viewers (388,000) than the Rams (377,000). Seemingly, even as a Super Bowl contender, the Rams’ cross-country move nine years ago continues to linger in the local ratings picture.
Finally, the Las Vegas Raiders are the least-watched NFL team locally. In Las Vegas, the Raiders average 82,000 viewers, down 2% from last year.
It will be interesting to see how this local viewership progresses over the final five weeks of the regular season, and it would not be surprising to see larger declines for teams like the Chiefs and Cowboys by season’s end.