Thursday night’s NFL Kickoff Game, between the defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants and the Washington Redskins, attracted 13.5 million viewers, the smallest audience since 2002.
 
 
 

YEAR
NETWORK
MATCHUP
US HOUSEHOLD
AA%*
VIEWERS (P2+)

2007
NBC
New Orleans at Indianapolis
11.4
17,471,000

2006
NBC
Miami at Pittsburgh
12.6
19,043,000

2005
ABC
Oakland at New England
11.7
18,008,000

2004
ABC
Indianapolis at New England
11.4
16,888,000

2003
ABC
N.Y. Jets at Washington
12.9
19,149,000

2002
ESPN
San Francisco at N.Y. Giants
7.6
10,799,000

*US HH AA% : Percentage of US households – Average Audience during entire telecast

The wait is finally over for anxious football fans, as the NFL’s annual Thursday Night Kickoff Game, tonight on NBC, will usher in this year’s NFL season.  The defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants will take on their divisional foe, the Washington Redskins. 
Below are historical U.S. television ratings for NFL Kickoff Games since 2002.
In terms of TV ratings, the 2003 game, which drew 19.1 million U.S. viewers, is the year to beat.  Last year’s game attracted approximately 17.5 million viewers.

YEAR
NETWORK
MATCHUP
US HOUSEHOLD
AA%*
VIEWERS (P2+)

2007
NBC
New Orleans at Indianapolis
11.4
17,471,000

2006
NBC
Miami at Pittsburgh
12.6
19,043,000

2005
ABC
Oakland at New England
11.7
18,008,000

2004
ABC
Indianapolis at New England
11.4
16,888,000

2003
ABC
N.Y. Jets at Washington
12.9
19,149,000

2002
ESPN
San Francisco …