FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The Patriots 31-28 win over the Colts on Sunday, Nov. 22 drew the third-highest regular season local ratings in franchise history with a 42.04 household rating in the Boston market. Over one million people tuned in to WBZ to watch New England improve to 8-2 on the season.
The Patriots-Colts game was the highest-rated game of the season in the local market and the third-highest all time, surpassed by New England's Dec. 29, 2007 win over the New York Giants that completed the only 16-0 regular season in NFL history and a Dec. 7, 2003 victory over the Dolphins. The Dec. 29, 2007 Patriots-Giants game earned a 50.1 HH rating in the Boston market, a rating that represents an unprecedented four-way telecast in which the game was seen in Boston on NFL Network, WBZ-TV Channel 4 (CBS), WCVB-TV Channel 5 (ABC) and WHDH-TV Channel 7 (NBC).
The Patriots continued their record-setting pace for HH ratings through 11 weeks in their designated market area with an average 33.4 HH rating. In addition, New England's 10 regular season games are the 10 most-watched television programs in the Boston area since football season began, with the Patriots-Colts game topping the list.
Nationally, the battle between elite AFC rivals on CBS averaged a 14.2 HH rating with 23.6 million viewers tuning in to watch the game, making it the highest-rated and most-watched program of the week.
This season, the Patriots have also been part of two record-setting NFL broadcasts. New England's 23-20 overtime victory over Baltimore on Sunday, Oct. 17 helped CBS set the mark for the highest rating for its single-game window since it acquired the current AFC package in 1998. The Patriots-Jets game on Sunday, Sept. 19 was the most-watched September CBS game ever.
This week, the Patriots travel to Detroit to face the Lions on Thanksgiving. The game will be broadcast to a national CBS audience with Jim Nantz and Phil Simms calling the game. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. and will air locally on WBZ in Boston and WPRI in Providence.
| HIGHEST RATED PATRIOTS REGULAR SEASON GAMES IN BOSTON TV MARKET | |||
| Rank | Date | Opponent | HH Rat. |
| 1. | 12/29/07 | @ New York Giants | 50.10 |
| 2. | 12/07/03 | Miami | 43.80 |
| 3. | 11/21/10 | Indianapolis | 42.04 |
| 4. | 12/16/07 | New York Jets | 40.40 |
| PATRIOTS 2010 RATINGS IN BOSTON TV MARKET | |||||
| Date | Opponent | Network | Boston TV | HH Rat. | HH Share |
| 9/12 | Cincinnati | CBS | WBZ | 28.70 | 59 |
| 9/19 | @ New York Jets | CBS | WBZ | 34.96 | 61 |
| 9/26 | Buffalo | CBS | WBZ | 29.30 | 62 |
| 10/04 | @ Miami | ESPN | WCVB | 30.70 | 48 |
| 10/17 | Baltimore | CBS | WBZ | 29.84 | 61 |
| 10/24 | @ San Diego | CBS | WBZ | 35.10 | 58 |
| 10/31 | Minnesota | FOX | WFXT | 36.13 | 64 |
| 11/07 | @ Cleveland | CBS | WBZ | 30.73 | 60 |
| 11/14 | @ Pittsburgh | NBC | WHDH | 36.39 | 55 |
| 11/21 | Indianapolis | CBS | WBZ | 42.04 | 67 |
| Avg. | 33.39 | 59.5 | |||
