FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Tom Brady ran for a touchdown, Julian Edelman threw for another and Rob Gronkowski helped seal the game on defense as the Patriots advanced to their fourth consecutive AFC Championship Game by defeating the Baltimore Ravens, 35-31, at Gillette Stadium in the AFC Divisional Round. NBC's national broadcast of the Saturday afternoon thriller posted a 20.9 average household rating and 38 market share, tying for the second-best overnight rating for a Saturday AFC Divisional Round game since 1994. The Patriots win garnered an eight percent increase from last year's AFC Divisional game between Indianapolis and New England (19.4) and a seven percent increase from last year's NFC Divisional game between New Orleans and Seattle (19.5).
Sunday's win over the Ravens also registered the third-highest rating and highest market share for a Divisional Round game in Patriots history. Patriots-Ravens posted a 45.7 household rating and 75 market share in the Boston regional market, meaning that on average, three out of four active televisions in the Boston area were tuned in to the game. That mark is the highest in franchise history and the average rating trails only the 2013 Divisional Round game versus the Houston Texans and the 2011 Divisional Round game versus the New York Jets.
The 2014 AFC Championship Game will be played on Sunday, January 18, at Gillette Stadium with kickoff set for 6:40 p.m. ET. The Patriots will host the winner of the AFC Divisional Round game between the Denver Broncos and Indianapolis Colts. The game will be broadcast nationally by CBS, with Jim Nantz calling play-by-play, Phil Simms providing color commentary and Tracy Wolfson reporting from the sidelines. The AFC Championship Game will also be broadcast locally in the Boston market on WBZ Channel 4.