NFL divisional playoffs average 39.2M viewers, 2nd-most ever

"Sunday night's overtime thriller between the Los Angeles Rams and Chicago Bears led the way, averaging 45.4 million viewers on NBC. The audience peaked at 52.6 million in the game's closing minutes. The Rams' 20-17 victory was the most-watched divisional playoff game for NBC, surpassing the previous mark of 41.1 million in January 1994, when Joe Montana and the Kansas City Chiefs defeated Warren Moon and the Houston Oilers. It also was the most-watched prime-time event since last February's Super Bowl on Fox."

"Denver's 33-30 overtime victory over Buffalo on CBS set the mark for the most-watched Saturday NFL playoff game, averaging 39.6 million. It peaked at 51.28 million during overtime. The previous Saturday record was 37.54 million for a Green Bay- San Francisco divisional round game in prime time on Fox two years ago. The previous high for the Saturday early window was 35.60 million for New Orleans- San Francisco on Jan. 14, 2012."

Last weekend's NFL divisional round averaged 39.2 million viewers, the second-most since tracking began in 1988. The four games were up 5% from last year and narrowly missed the 40 million record set two years earlier. Nielsen began using its Big Data + Panel methodology last September and expanded measurement to include out-of-home viewers (excluding Hawaii and Alaska) and smart TV data, instead of only the top 44 media markets that covered 65% of the country. Sunday night's Rams-Bears game averaged 45.4 million on NBC and peaked at 52.6 million. Denver's 33-30 overtime win averaged 39.6 million on CBS and peaked at 51.28 million.

Read at ESPN.com