**
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. –** The Patriots made their Gillette Stadium debut on Sunday, Sept. 21, and held the visiting Oakland Raiders without a touchdown en route to a 16-9 victory in what was the highest rated game of the season. The defensive battle, which was clinched by a Vince Wilfork interception in the final minute, attracted a 33.0 household rating and 66 market share and was the most watched program of the week in the Boston market.
An average of 1,164,800 total viewers tuned in to see New England improve to 12-1 in home openers since Gillette Stadium opened in 2002. The 33.0 rating it garnered is the highest of the season thus far, besting the 31.2 rating for the Week 1 game at Miami and the 30.7 rating for the Week 2 win at Minnesota. In addition, the win vs. Oakland was the second-most watched Week 3 game in franchise history, behind only the Week 3 matchup vs. Baltimore in 2012, which aired on NBC's Sunday Night Football. This year's home opener still drew a 66 share in the local Boston market, despite competing with a full slate of afternoon games. Comparatively, the late afternoon Super Bowl rematch between Denver and Seattle, which was the second-most watched program of the week in the local market, attracted an impressive 16.6 household rating and 30 market share.
After three afternoon games to start the season, the Patriots will make their primetime debut on ESPN's Monday Night Football on Sept. 29 at Kansas City. New England has enjoyed success on Monday night, winning 11 of their last 13 games on Monday Night Football.
| Date | Opponent | Rating | Market Share |
| 9/23/12 | at Baltimore | 36.1 | 57 |
| 9/21/14 | vs. Oakland | 33.0 | 66 |
| 9/22/13 | vs. Tampa Bay | 30.3 | 59 |
| 9/25/05 | at Pittsburgh | 29.9 | 52 |
| 9/26/10 | vs. Buffalo | 29.3 | 62 |
| 9/26/99 | vs. N.Y. Giants | 27.9 | 41 |
