Skip navigation

Colts-Chargers ties mark for overnight rating

Game equals 2003 Falcons-Packers for highest Saturday game since '99

Video
Darren Sproles, Clint Session
  Postgame Report: Chargers-Colts
Jan. 3: Bob, Jerome, and Matt recap a great game in San Diego, where the Chargers shocked the Colts to stay alive in the playoffs.

NBC Sports

Slideshow
Image: Boston Bruins left wing Sturm and Florida Panthers defenseman Ballard try to control puck in overtime period of their NHL hockey game in Boston
  Week in Sports Pictures
A boxing champ celebrates, a kicker regrets, fans mourn a hero, and much more.

more photos

Video
  King's Notebook: Week 11
Nov. 22: Dan Patrick and Peter King break down the wild finish in Detroit, highlighting the clutch play of Matthew Stafford and the decision making of Eric Mangini.

NBC Sports

Video: Football from NBC Sports
Sanchez off the mark
Nov. 22: Mark Sanchez knows he made too many mistakes for the Jets to beat the Patriots in Week 11.

Slideshow
Denver Broncos v Washington Redskins
  Sideline support
Check out some of the NFL cheerleaders from across the league.

more photos

updated 2:33 p.m. ET Jan. 4, 2009

NEW YORK - The San Diego Chargers' 23-17 overtime victory over the Indianapolis Colts tied the mark for the best overnight rating for a Saturday wild-card game since 1999.

The game earned an 18.3 overnight rating and a 30 share on NBC, the network said Sunday. That equaled the 2003 Atlanta-Green Bay game for the highest mark for a Saturday wild-card playoff since 1999, when the Arizona-Dallas matchup received a 20.9 rating and a 38 share.

Saturday night's game, which had a peak rating/share of 21.6/37 during overtime, was also 10 percent higher than last year's Jacksonville-Pittsburgh game (16.6/27).

Story continues below ↓
advertisement | your ad here

The early game on Saturday, Arizona's 30-24 victory over Atlanta, earned a 14.3 rating and 28 share, giving the network the best two-game overnight average (16.4/29) in four years and a 3 percent increase over last year's Saturday wild-card games.

Overnight ratings measure the 55 largest TV markets in the United States, covering nearly 70 percent of the country. Each overnight rating point represents about 735,000 TV homes. The rating is the percentage of all homes with TVs, whether or not they are in use. The share is the percentage of in-use televisions tuned to a given show.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Sponsored links