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THIS WEEK IN RATINGS: NFL leads as MLB playoffs top 7 million

The available U.S. sports audiences for Sept. 28–Oct. 4, ranked by reported average viewers, with newer releases and missing figures identified.

By The Sporting Page Editorial Staff
An Atlanta Braves pitcher delivers a pitch in the Division Series.
An Atlanta pitcher delivers against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Division Series. · Credit: Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images, via Front Office Sports

CBS' Sunday late NFL window led the available U.S. sports audiences for Sept. 28–Oct. 4 with 28.45 million viewers. Eagles–Bears on Monday Night Football followed with 22.6 million across ESPN's announced platforms.

Baseball's largest reported game was Red Sox–Yankees Game 2 at 7.41 million. Phillies–Braves Game 3 drew 6.13 million, while Ohio State–Iowa led college football's 32 reported broadcasts with 5.97 million.

The WNBA's leading game in this window was Fever–Aces Game 3 at 2.25 million. Rangers–Bruins led the five reported NHL opening games with 878,000. WWE SmackDown averaged 1.25 million on USA Network.

The ranking covers 68 events with publicly reported average audiences. It orders average viewers rather than peaks or total reach. Platform coverage varies, and the table identifies combined television and streaming figures where established.

NFL regional windows cover multiple games. Multi-game averages and studio programs appear separately, and a simulcast is counted once using its reported combined figure. Reported ties remain tied at the available precision.

The Dodgers–Braves opener has conflicting published totals, shown together. London NFL figures still await local simulcasts. Sports Media Watch reported that four Peacock and NBCSN MLB Wild Card games had no publicly released audiences.

Newer Oct. 5–6 audiences appear below the completed-week ranking. Missing ratings remain unranked; the list covers publicly reported figures and excludes broadcasts without an established audience total.

U.S. average audience

This Week in Ratings

Sept. 28–Oct. 4, 2026 · 68 reported events

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This Week in Ratings; Sept. 28–Oct. 4, 2026 · 68 reported events
Rank Event / program Avg. viewers Aired / period Network / platform Source
1 CBS late regional window

Audience scope

Multi-game window; Chiefs–Raiders in 69% of markets. Reported 28.45M when rounded.

 28.448M Oct. 4 CBS Nielsen
2 Eagles–Bears

Audience scope

Combined audience reported by ESPN. Counted once.

 22.6M Sept. 28 ABC / ESPN / ESPN Deportes / NFL+ ESPN
3 Lions–Panthers

Audience scope

Nielsen weekly figure; SMW rounds to 19.51M. Streaming scope follows published figure.

 19.506M Oct. 4 NBC Nielsen
4 FOX singleheader window

Audience scope

Regional multi-game package, led by Rams–Eagles.

 19.149M Oct. 4 FOX Nielsen
5 Steelers–Browns

Audience scope

Reported Prime Video game audience; streaming NFL figures include home-market OTA simulcasts per SMW.

 16.587M Oct. 1 Prime Video Nielsen
6 CBS early regional window

Audience scope

Multi-game window; Patriots–Bills in 65% of markets per SMW.

 15.233M Oct. 4 CBS Nielsen
7 Red Sox–Yankees, Wild Card G2

Audience scope

SMW precise 7.41M; NBC released rounded 7.4M inclusive of first-party streaming.

 7.41M Sept. 30 NBC / Peacock SMW
8 Red Sox–Yankees, Wild Card G1

Audience scope

NBC released rounded 7.3M. Includes first-party streaming in Nielsen measure.

 7.3M Sept. 29 NBC / Peacock NBCUniversal
9 Phillies–Braves, Wild Card G3

Audience scope

SMW precise 6.13M; NBC released rounded 6.1M.

 6.13M Oct. 1 NBC / Peacock SMW
10 Ohio State–Iowa 5.97M Oct. 3 CBS On3
11 Braves–Dodgers, NLDS G1

Audience scope

UNRESOLVED: SMW 5.37M; FOS quoting FOX 5.48M. Neither explains the discrepancy. The ordering is unchanged under either figure.

 5.37M
5.48M†		 Oct. 3 FOX SMW / FOS
12 Alabama–Mississippi State 5.08M Oct. 3 ABC On3
13 Colts–Commanders, London

Audience scope

PARTIAL: local over-the-air simulcasts are still pending.

 4.987M* Oct. 4 NFL Network Nielsen
14 Miami–Clemson 4.63M Oct. 3 ABC On3
15 Florida–Missouri

Audience scope

Published rounded average. SMW reports 4.45M for Florida–Missouri; this table consistently uses On3 4.44M.

 4.44M Oct. 3 ABC On3
16 Phillies–Braves, Wild Card G2

Audience scope

NBC released rounded 4.2M.

 4.2M Sept. 30 NBC / Peacock NBC Sports
17 Michigan–Minnesota 4.06M Oct. 3 FOX On3
18 Phillies–Braves, Wild Card G1

Audience scope

NBC released rounded 3.9M.

 3.9M Sept. 29 NBC / Peacock NBCUniversal
19 Yankees–Rays, ALDS G1

Audience scope

Combined TV channels in SMW report; separate streaming addition not established.

 3.51M Oct. 3 TBS / truTV SMW
20 Penn State–Northwestern 3.45M Oct. 2 FOX On3
21 Braves–Dodgers, NLDS G2

Audience scope

Nielsen precise 3.334M; SMW reports rounded 3.33M.

 3.334M Oct. 4 FS1 Nielsen
22 Auburn–Tennessee 3.02M Oct. 3 ESPN On3
23 Notre Dame–North Carolina 2.98M Oct. 3 ESPN On3
24 Washington–USC 2.56M Oct. 3 NBC On3
25 Texas Tech–Colorado 2.51M Oct. 3 FOX On3
26 Padres–Brewers, NLDS G1 2.5M Oct. 3 FS1 SMW
27 Pitt–Virginia Tech 2.43M Oct. 2 ESPN On3 tracker
28 Fever–Aces, first round G3

Audience scope

Official Big Data + Panel figure virtually identical to initially reported panel-only figure. FOS/USA report combined simulcast.

 2.25M Oct. 1 USA Network / CNBC SMW
29 Padres–Brewers, NLDS G2 2.14M Oct. 4 FS1 SMW
30 White Sox–Guardians, ALDS G1

Audience scope

Combined TV channels in SMW report; separate streaming addition not established.

 2.1M Oct. 3 TBS / truTV SMW
31 BYU–TCU 1.57M Oct. 3 ESPN On3 tracker
32 Aces–Fever, first round G2 1.42M Sept. 29 Prime Video SMW
33 Valkyries–Wings, first round G2 1.4M Sept. 30 ESPN SMW
34 WWE SmackDown

Audience scope

Fightful reports 1.250M viewers and a 0.27 adult rating, credited to Wrestlenomics. F4W/WON's prose agrees; its conflicting table lists 1.280M and 0.29.

 1.25M

· 18–49: 0.27
 Oct. 2 USA Network Fightful
35 Cincinnati–Arizona 1.21M Oct. 3 FOX On3 tracker
36 Dream–Mystics, first round G2

Audience scope

Rounded 1.2M, tied at published precision with Wings–Valkyries G3.

 1.2M Sept. 30 ESPN SMW
36 Wings–Valkyries, first round G3

Audience scope

Rounded 1.2M, tied at published precision with Dream–Mystics G2.

 1.2M Oct. 2 ESPN2 SMW
38 Liberty–Dream, semifinal G1 1.17M Oct. 4 ABC FOS
39 Arkansas–Texas A&M 1.16M Oct. 3 ESPN2 On3 tracker
40 Aces–Valkyries, semifinal G1

Audience scope

Nielsen TV 1.01M + Adobe streaming 111K; combined total rounded to 1.12M.

 1.12M‡ Oct. 4 NBC / Peacock SMW
41 Navy–Air Force 1.08M Oct. 3 CBS On3 tracker
42 Lynx–Liberty, first round G2 1.06M Sept. 29 USA Network SMW
43 AEW Dynamite 899,000

· 18–49: 0.22
 Sept. 30 TBS Wrestlenomics
44 Rangers–Bruins 878,000 Sept. 29 ESPN SMW
45 Panthers–Hurricanes 859,000 Sept. 29 ESPN ESPN
46 Maryland–Nebraska 850,000 Oct. 3 FS1 On3 tracker
47 Penguins–Flyers 745,000 Sept. 30 TNT SMW
48 Baylor–Arizona State 680,000 Oct. 3 ESPN On3 tracker
49 WWE NXT

Audience scope

U.S. TV average; ESPN Unlimited not included in reported NXT programming audience.

 671,000

· 18–49: 0.11
 Sept. 29 The CW PW Dot Net
50 Virginia–Florida State 670,000 Oct. 3 ESPN2 On3 tracker
51 West Virginia–Iowa State 640,000 Oct. 3 TNT On3 tracker
52 Michigan State–Wisconsin 520,000 Oct. 3 BTN On3 tracker
53 Indiana–Rutgers 480,000 Oct. 3 BTN On3 tracker
54 Blackhawks–Golden Knights 473,000 Sept. 29 ESPN SMW
55 North Texas–Tulsa 440,000 Oct. 1 ESPN On3 tracker
56 Kings–Avalanche 420,000 Sept. 30 TNT SMW
57 AEW Collision 415,000

· 18–49: 0.08
 Oct. 3 TNT Wrestlenomics
58 UCF–Houston 380,000 Oct. 3 ESPN2 On3 tracker
59 Wyoming–North Dakota State 360,000 Oct. 3 The CW On3 tracker
60 Oregon State–Colorado State 350,000 Oct. 3 USA On3 tracker
61 Boston College–SMU 340,000 Oct. 3 The CW On3 tracker
61 Purdue–Illinois 340,000 Oct. 3 BTN On3 tracker
63 Texas State–San Diego State 260,000 Oct. 3 The CW On3 tracker
64 Fresno State–Washington State 200,000 Oct. 3 USA On3 tracker
65 TNA Impact 182,000

· 18–49: 0.02
 Oct. 1 AMC F4W/WON
66 Middle Tennessee State–Kansas 110,000 Oct. 3 ESPNU On3 tracker
67 Marshall–James Madison 90,000 Oct. 3 ESPNU On3 tracker
68 Temple–USF 80,000 Oct. 3 ESPNU On3 tracker
Ranked by reported U.S. average audience. NFL regional windows combine multiple games; simulcasts count once. Rounded ties share ranks. All 68 available events appear in this table.

Audience notes: † Dodgers–Braves G1: Sports Media Watch reports 5.37M; Front Office Sports, citing FOX, reports 5.48M. The difference is unresolved; the rank is unchanged under either figure. Sorting uses 5.37M.

* London: NFL Network’s 4.987M is a partial total pending local simulcasts. ‡ Aces–Valkyries combines Nielsen TV’s 1.01M with 111,000 Adobe streaming viewers, rounded to 1.12M. The reports use different platform scopes; the table preserves each published measure.

College football uses On3’s consistent rounded list. Florida–Missouri is 4.44M there and 4.45M in SMW. Distinctions below source precision are not inferred. M = million viewers.

U.S. average audience

Studio and pregame programs

Sept. 28–Oct. 4 · ranked separately from games

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Studio and pregame programs; Sept. 28–Oct. 4 · ranked separately from games
Rank Event / program Avg. viewers Aired / period Network / platform Source
1 Sunday Night NFL Pre-Kick

Audience scope

Program average as listed by Nielsen; outside the game ranking.

 14.543M Week of Sept. 28–Oct. 4 NBC Nielsen
2 Football Night in America, Part 3

Audience scope

Program average as listed by Nielsen.

 11.016M Week of Sept. 28–Oct. 4 NBC Nielsen
3 Monday Night Kickoff

Audience scope

Program average as listed by Nielsen.

 4.851M Week of Sept. 28–Oct. 4 ESPN Nielsen
4 Monday Night Postgame

Audience scope

Program average as listed by Nielsen.

 3.732M Week of Sept. 28–Oct. 4 ESPN Nielsen
5 NFL GameDay Final

Audience scope

Program average as listed by Nielsen.

 3.156M Week of Sept. 28–Oct. 4 NFL Network Nielsen
6 College GameDay, Iowa City

Audience scope

Rounded 2.9M full-show average; final-hour 3.7M excluded.

 2.9M Oct. 3 ESPN announced show average ESPN
7 Monday Night Countdown

Audience scope

Combined pregame program average reported by ESPN.

 1.8M Sept. 28 ESPN / NFL Network ESPN
Full-program averages. College GameDay’s final-hour 3.7M segment is excluded. Nielsen-listed pre-kick/postgame segments retain their individual program identities.
U.S. average audience

Multi-game and round averages

Separate groups of games · periods shown

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Multi-game and round averages; Separate groups of games · periods shown
Rank Event / program Avg. viewers Aired / period Network / platform Source
1 FOX Sports NLDS coverage

Audience scope

Four-game package average; +2% vs 2025 ALDS, −11% vs 2024 NLDS. Published FOX metric, not a sum of game viewers.

 3.2M Oct. 3–4 FOX / FS1 FOS
2 TNT Sports ALDS opening doubleheader

Audience scope

Two-game package average, +6% vs 2024 ALDS.

 2.8M Oct. 3 TBS / truTV / HBO Max FOS
3 WNBA first round

Audience scope

Ten-game round average, +37%. Starts before the weekly window.

 1.3M Sept. 27–Oct. 2 ESPN/ABC / Prime Video / USA Sports SMW
4 WNBA semifinal openers

Audience scope

Two-game average, +10%. NBC component includes Adobe streaming.

 1.15M Oct. 4 ABC / NBC / Peacock FOS
5 ESPN NHL opening tripleheader

Audience scope

Three-game package average, −3%.

 747,000 Sept. 29 ESPN SMW
6 TNT NHL opening doubleheader

Audience scope

Two-game package average, +58%.

 587,000 Sept. 30 TNT SMW
Each row averages a distinct package, not the number of unique people who watched all games. WNBA first round starts Sept. 27, outside the Monday–Sunday window. Package averages are not added to event viewers.
U.S. average audience

Newer reported results

Oct. 5–6, 2026 · outside the completed week

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Newer reported results; Oct. 5–6, 2026 · outside the completed week
Rank Event / program Avg. viewers Aired / period Network / platform Source
1 Falcons–Saints

Audience scope

Includes local home-market over-the-air simulcasts.

 11.9M Oct. 5 ESPN / ESPN2 / ESPN Deportes SMW
2 Yankees–Rays, ALDS G2

Audience scope

Reported Game 2 audience.

 4.3M Oct. 5 TBS / truTV SMW
3 White Sox–Guardians, ALDS G2

Audience scope

Reported Game 2 audience.

 2.9M Oct. 5 TBS / truTV SMW
4 WWE NXT

Audience scope

0.10 adults 18–49 rating.

 532,000 Oct. 6 The CW Wrestlenomics
5 AEW Dynamite

Audience scope

Displaced Tuesday airing; 0.11 adults 18–49 rating.

 495,000 Oct. 6 TBS Wrestlenomics
These events are newer than the Sept. 28–Oct. 4 window. Their ranks apply only within this separate table.

Unranked and unavailable figures

  • White Sox–Astros Wild Card G1 and G2 (Sept. 29–30): Sports Media Watch reported that the Peacock and NBCSN audiences had not been publicly released. SMW
  • Padres–Cubs Wild Card G1 and G2 (Sept. 29–30): Sports Media Watch reported that the Peacock and NBCSN audiences had not been publicly released. SMW
  • Colts–Commanders local OTA simulcasts (Oct. 4): NFL Network 4.987M is ranked as the available partial figure. Complete local-simulcast addition pending. SMW
  • NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Las Vegas (Oct. 3–4): Audience figures circulating on social media remain unconfirmed by an accessible original audience report and are excluded from the ranking.
  • Other soccer, golf, racing and streaming-exclusive broadcasts (Sept. 28–Oct. 4): The linked reports do not supply qualifying U.S. average audiences for these broadcasts. Unreported figures remain unranked.
  • SEC Network, ACC Network and CBS Sports Network college football (Sept. 28–Oct. 4): Outside the Nielsen-measured On3 tracker. No audience inferred. On3 tracker
  • WWE Raw on Netflix (Sept. 28): Wrestlenomics reports 2.5M global Netflix views through seven days. Global views use a different geography and metric from the U.S. average-audience ranking. Wrestlenomics

How the ranking works

The event week runs Monday, Sept. 28 through Sunday, Oct. 4. Events with published U.S. average audiences enter the main table; studio programs, multi-game averages, peaks, reach and global Netflix views use different measures and remain separate. Ties share a competition rank at reported precision. Each network simulcast enters once at the reported combined audience. Coverage is limited to publicly established figures in the linked reports; unavailable totals remain unranked.

Nielsen implemented measurement enhancements for the fall 2026 season, including changes to co-viewing. Longer comparisons need that context. Nielsen methodology announcement.

Sources