FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The Patriots kicked off the 2021 season with a victory on Thursday night, defeating the Washington Football Team 22-13 in the team's first preseason game.
With the excitement of fans being allowed back into Gillette Stadium for the first time since the 2019 season, as well as the debuts of several promising rookies and new faces in New England, the Patriots saw a 37% increase in ratings compared to Week 1 of the 2019 preseason at the Detroit Lions.
In a combined total of WBZ-CBS and WMUR-ABC stations in the Boston (Manchester) DMA, the New England vs. Washington game delivered an 18.7 household rating and a 38 market share. The game held an average of 623,900 viewers, peaking at 8:00 p.m. with 714,000 viewers.
The Patriots will travel to Philadelphia next week for a matchup with the Eagles on Thursday, Aug. 19 at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast locally on WBZ-CBS with Bob Socci handling play-by-play duties and Scott Zolak leading color commentary.
