The overnight rating for Super Bowl XLIX on NBC is in, and it’s really high. Like, the highest ever. The 49.7 overnight rating eclipses last year’s rating – a 47.6 – by a couple points, according to Pro Football Talk. It’s not a surprise, given the Seattle Seahawks blew out the Denver Broncos last year, and the game was completely over after the first play of the second half.
A TV rating reflects the percentage of households with a TV turned on that are tuned into that particular program. That means that with the hundreds of TV channels out there almost half of the households with people in front of a TV were watching the Super Bowl.
It’s not surprising, given how the game unfolded. Super Bowl XLIX featured big play after big play by Tom Brady, Chris Matthews, Julian Edelman, Marshawn Lynch and so many other players for the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks.
While people have been talking all season about the NFL losing its fan base due to controversies like domestic violence and "Deflategate," the interest in the league has never been higher. Football is king, it's going to be king for a while, and the NFL wears the crown.