The Sked: SATURDAY RATINGS January 7

There are a lot of NFL fans out there, but no one will be more depressed to see the season end than NBC.  Last night, NBC pulled a preliminary 10.0 Adult 18-49 rating from 8-11 pm for the Detroit Lions at the New Orleans Saints (the second half of a Wild Card playoff doubleheader).  We are estimating the rating will go up to about an 11.3 rating after the Pacific and Mountain time zones are correctly counted in the official ratings to be released Tuesday. 
 
Last year, NBC averaged an 11.6 rating in prime time on Saturday, January 8, 2011 for the Wild Card Saturday prime game.  This was the penultimate NFL telecast of the season for NBC.  CBS and FOX take over the NFL playoff coverage before NBC returns for The Super Bowl, which is leading into the season premiere of The Voice and the last promotional platform for Smash the next night. 

     Adult 18-49 Rating -- Nightly Average
Saturday        NBC    ABC    CBS    FOX
01.07.2012      11.3*  1.0    0.7    0.7
01.08.2011      11.6   0.8    0.8    0.7   

CBS and FOX aired low-rated repeats against the playoff game, while ABC aired a live Republican Debate from New Hampshire.  The preliminary 1.1 rating for ABC from 9-11 pm ET will probably be adjusted up to about a 1.3 rating.

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