EAGLES-COWBOYS ON NBC HIGHEST-RATED CHRISTMAS DAY NFL GAME SINCE 1993

EAGLES-COWBOYS ON NBC HIGHEST-RATED CHRISTMAS DAY NFL GAME SINCE 1993

NBC's Overnight Rating Up 19% Over MNF Week 16 in '05

NEW YORK � Dec. 26, 2006 � The Philadelphia Eagles 23-7 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on NBC drew a 12.5 overnight rating and 29 share, the highest rating for a Christmas Day NFL broadcast since 1993 (15.1/39, Houston Oilers at San Francisco 49ers on NBC).

NBC's 12.5/20 is 19 percent higher than the Week 16 overnight rating for ABC's Monday Night Football in 2005 (10.5/18 for New England Patriots at New York Jets on 12/26/05) and is 21 percent higher than Fox's rating for their Christmas Day matchup last year (10.3/25 for Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers).

Final national ratings will be available tomorrow.

Top Ten Metered Markets For Eagles-Cowboys
1. Dallas 29.8/61
2. Philadelphia 26.8/58
3. San Antonio 20.1/40
4. Oklahoma City 17.6/36
5. Tampa 17.5/34
6. Tulsa 16.9/30
7. Las Vegas 16.8/34
8. Charlotte 15.5/30
9. Austin 15.3/37
10. St. Louis 15.2/32

On New Year's Eve, in the NFL regular-season finale, "NBC Sunday Night Football" presents what could be Brett Favre's final game as the Green Bay Packers (7-8) visit the Chicago Bears (13-2) at Soldier Field. Coverage starts with the "Football Night in America" studio show at 7 p.m. ET, with kickoff at 8:15 p.m. ET.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: What follows is the afternoon update with the final national Nielsen ratings.]

EAGLES-COWBOYS IS MOST-WATCHED NBC NFL BROADCAST THIS SEASON, HIGHEST-RATED CHRISTMAS DAY GAME IN MORE THAN A DECADE

EAGLES-COWBOYS IS MOST-WATCHED NBC NFL BROADCAST THIS SEASON, HIGHEST-RATED CHRISTMAS DAY GAME IN MORE THAN A DECADE

23.2 Million Watch Philadelphia Defeat Dallas; "NBC SNF" Averaging 1.3 Million More Viewers than MNF Last Year

NEW YORK � Dec. 27, 2006 � NBC's special Christmas Day broadcast of the Philadelphia Eagles 23-7 defeat of the Dallas Cowboys averaged 23.2 million viewers, making it the most-viewed NBC NFL broadcast this season, according to Nielsen Media Research. The 23.2 million who watched is 61 percent higher than the viewer average for the comparable game last year, ABC's Week 16 Monday Night Football game (14.4 million for New England Patriots-New York Jets, 12/26/05). Through 16 games, "NBC Sunday Night Football" is averaging 17.7 million viewers, 1.3 million more than and an eight percent increase over ABC's "Monday Night Football" broadcasts last season (16.4 million).

MOST WATCHED NBC GAME OF THE SEASON

The 23.2 million viewers who watched the Eagles beat the Cowboys is the most for any NBC NFL broadcast this season, two percent more than the much-hyped Manning-Manning Indianapolis-New York Giants game on Sept. 10 (22.7 million viewers).

EAGLES-COWBOYS RATES 32% HIGHER THAN ABC MNF

Eagles-Cowboys on NBC drew a 12.1 national rating and 29 share, 32 percent higher than ABC's Week 16 broadcast last season (9.2/16).

NBC HIGHEST-RATED CHRISTMAS DAY GAME IN MORE THAN A DECADE

NBC's Eagles-Cowboys broadcast is the highest-rated Christmas Day NFL broadcast since 1995 (15.5/31 for Cowboys-Cardinals on ABC).

NBC HAS BIGGEST CHRISTMAS NIGHT FOR ANY NETWORK SINCE 2000

Powered by the lead-in of NBC SNF, the network dominated Christmas night in adults 18-49 and total viewers, with the highest December 25 18-49 average for the network (4.9 rating) since 1998. In total viewers, it's NBC's biggest Christmas-night primetime audience (14.9 million viewers) since 1993 and the biggest Christmas-night primetime audience for any network since 2000 (ABC's Monday Night Football Cowboys-Titans).

"NBC SNF" PACING AHEAD OF ABC'S "MNF"

Season to date, "NBC SNF" is averaging 17.7 million viewers, eight percent higher than ABC's "MNF" average through 16 games last season (16.4 million). "NBC SNF" is averaging an 11.2/18, three percent higher than ABC's MNF through 16 games (10.9/18).

On New Year's Eve, in the NFL regular-season finale, "NBC Sunday Night Football" presents what could be Brett Favre's final game as the Green Bay Packers (7-8) visit the Chicago Bears (13-2) at Soldier Field. Coverage starts with the "Football Night in America" studio show at 7 p.m. ET, with kickoff at 8:15 p.m. ET.