FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The Patriots kicked off the 2019 season with a dominant road win on Thursday night, defeating the Detroit Lions 31-3 at Ford Field in their first preseason game.
In addition to a strong defensive performance, including nine sacks, a stellar 150.0 rating for quarterback Brian Hoyer and several highlight-reel plays from some of the newest faces on the team, the Patriots also took a victory in the weekly ratings.
In a combined total of WBZ-CBS and WMUR-ABC stations in the Boston (Manchester) DMA, the Patriots vs. Lions game delivered a 13.7 household rating - the highest local program rating of the week - and a 27 market share, with an average of 463,300 viewers. Ratings peaked at 8:15 p.m. with a 17.4 rating and a 32 share.
Additionally, WBZ's "Patriots GameDay" rounded out the top five local programs of the week with a 5.5 household rating and 13 market share.
The Patriots will travel to Tennessee next week for a matchup with the Titans on Saturday, Aug. 17 at 7:00 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast locally on WBZ-CBS with Bob Socci handling play-by-play duties, Scott Zolak leading color commentary and Rob Ninkovich providing analysis from the sideline.
