nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for sunday, october 10, 2010)

Here are the highlights of the 18 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

A full hour "NFL Overrun" (22.43 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.2, #1) nearly put CBS (15.28 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.6, #2) on top on Sunday. Leading out of said coverage were new episodes of "60 Minutes" (14.65 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.8, #T4), "The Amazing Race 17" (12.11 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.8, #T4) and "Undercover Boss" (11.93 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 3.5, #7).

Holding onto the adults 18-49 gold then was NBC (11.76 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.7, #1) with its mix of "Football Night in America #1" (5.34 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 1.8, #15), "Football Night in America #2" (6.51 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 2.4, #13), "Football Night in America #3" (12.24 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 4.8, #3) and "Sunday Night Football" (14.00 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 5.7, #2).

Next up was ABC (8.94 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.6, #3) with new episodes of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (6.35 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.5, #18), "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (8.15 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.3, #14), "Desperate Housewives" (12.19 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 3.8, #T4) and "Brothers & Sisters" (9.04 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.8, #10).

And finally, repeats of "The Cleveland Show" (3.83 million viewers, #18; adults 18-49: 1.6, #17) and "The Simpsons" (3.93 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 1.7, #16) lead into new episodes of "The Simpsons" (6.72 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 3.0, #9), "The Cleveland Show" (5.59 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 2.6, #11), "Family Guy" (7.02 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 3.4, #8) and "American Dad" (5.38 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 2.5, #12) on FOX (5.41 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.5, #4).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): 60 Minutes (81.00%), The Amazing Race 17 (15.20%), Brothers & Sisters (-6.70%), Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (-8.00%), Desperate Housewives (-11.60%), Undercover Boss (-12.50%), Family Guy (-12.80%), American Dad (-13.80%), The Cleveland Show (-16.10%), America's Funniest Home Videos (-16.70%), Sunday Night Football (-19.70%), The Simpsons (-26.80%).

Here are the highlights of the 20 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (10/11/09):

NBC (12.94 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.9, #1) was once again the king of Sunday night thanks to its "Sunday Night Football" (14.40 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 5.5, #2) franchise. Leading into said coverage were its pre-game specials "Football Night in America #1" (5.37 million viewers, #18; adults 18-49: 1.8, #17), "Football Night in America #2" (7.59 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 2.8, #13) and "Football Night in America #3" (11.40 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 4.3, #6).

Second place then went to CBS (12.55 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.6, #2) with its mix of (approximate results only): "NFL Overrun" (22.68 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 7.5, #1), "60 Minutes" (16.70 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.7, #3), "The Amazing Race 15" (10.80 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.1, #10), "Three Rivers" (7.70 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.9, #16) and "Cold Case" (7.23 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T18).

Next up was ABC (9.99 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.2, #3) with its "NASCAR Overrun" (8.91 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.5, #14) followed by new episodes of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (7.40 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 2.2, #15), "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (9.79 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 3.0, #11), "Desperate Housewives" (13.05 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 4.4, #5) and "Brothers & Sisters" (8.98 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.9, #12).

And finally, FOX (6.28 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.0, #4) closed out the night with its combination of "Brothers" (2.95 million viewers, #20; adults 18-49: 1.1, #20), a repeat of "The Cleveland Show" (3.84 million viewers, #19; adults 18-49: 1.7, #T18) and new episodes of "The Simpsons" (7.55 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 3.6, #8), "The Cleveland Show" (7.78 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 3.8, #7), "Family Guy" (8.88 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 4.5, #4) and "American Dad" (6.67 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 3.4, #9).

Source: Nielsen Media Research