FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots (5-1) Week 6 game at Gillette Stadium against the Dallas Cowboys (2-3) earned record ratings for FOX network's featured game of the week. Nationally, FOX's broadcast of the game earned a 17.1 rating and was the network's third highest-rated regular season game in the last 10 years and the highest rating since Brett Favre returned to Green Bay as a Minnesota Viking (17.4) in 2009.
Along with Dallas/New England, the matchup between the New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers factored into the FOX MM rating statistics, but only generated eight percent of the ratings - 88 percent of the FOX viewers tuned in for the Dallas at New England contest.
In the Boston (Manchester) designated market area (DMA), the Dallas at New England matchup was watched by 1.4 million viewers and gathered a 37.10 HH rating and out produced the Dallas DMA (36.3). The broadcast peaked at 43.00 HH rating during the final minutes of the game as the Patriots drove down field to score a game winning touchdown to defeat the Cowboys by a score of 20-16.
The HH rating of 37.10 equals the season high established during Week 1 against the Miami Dolphins (0-5). The Miami broadcast was viewed nationally on Monday Night Football. Additionally, New England set a new Week 6 HH ratings record, eclipsing the HH rating of 36.0 against Dallas in 2007- the last time the Cowboys played at Gillette Stadium. New England has set organizational television records in five-out-of-six weeks this season. The 62 percent HH share set a season high as well, beating the 61 percent figures from the home games against New York Jets (10/09) and San Diego (09/18).
Following the Bye Week, the Patriots will travel to Pittsburg (4-2) to take on the Steelers on Sunday, October 30. The game is scheduled to start at 4:15, CBS's featured time slot to reach the largest national audience. Locally, the game will be broadcast on WBZ in the Boston market.
