Tom Brady’s return to New England was filled with drama from start to finish, and it helped NBC Sports bring in the most viewers for its “Sunday Night Football” franchise since 2012.
The network said the Patriots versus Tampa Buccaneers contest averaged 28.5 million total viewers on all platforms, including NBC TV and streaming service Peacock. NBC said it was the largest audience since a December 2012 Week 17 contest featuring the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Football Team, which attracted 30.3 million viewers.
The Bucs beat the Patriots 19-17 in a game pitting superstar quarterback Brady against his former team and coach Bill Belichick. Brady won six Super Bowls, and lost three more, with the Patriots before adding another win last year with the Bucs.
Sunday’s game averaged “approximately 27.2 million viewers” on NBC TV, according to NBC Sports, which used metrics from Nielsen and Adobe Analytics. Top markets included Providence, Rhode Island; Boston, Tampa, Hartford and Cincinnati.
The contest had plenty of theatrics.
Brady started it by breaking Drew Brees’ record for passing yards (80,358) to become the NFL’s all-time leader. Brady now has 80,560 yards after finishing Sunday’s game throwing for 269 yards. Brady also led the Bucs to a late fourth-quarter field goal with 1:57 remaining, giving the visitors a two-point edge. Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones responded to lead the team to its field goal attempt, but Patriots kicker Nick Folk missed a 56-yard potential game-winner.
Brady’s ability to draw huge audiences isn’t surprising. The quarterback has been featured in three of the five most-viewed NFL games on a Sunday dating back to 1988, the earliest year viewership stats are available, according to the league.
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