Cowboys vs. Lions Sets TNF Viewership Record, How Many NFL Fans Watched NFC Battle?

Last week's Thursday Night Football matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions drew historic ratings.

Per Front Office Sports' Ryan Glasspiegel, the game averaged 19.39 million viewers, which set a viewership record for Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime.

The previous record was a matchup between the Washington Commanders and Green Bay Packers in September, and the Lions and Cowboys averaged 1.63 million more viewers than that game.

Thursday's matchup saw a peak of 22.18 million, which was a record for TNF on Prime.

Last year's comparable game, the Lions vs. Green Bay Packers on Dec. 5, averaged 17.29 million viewers, which was a record for Thursday Night Football on Prime at the time. It's the 11th time this season that Prime's TNF coverage has produced a year-over-year viewership increase.

Amazon Prime Video took over Thursday Night Football coverage in 2022, and this has been its most successful year so far. According to Glasspiegel, the NFL's Thursday matchups are averaging 15.20 million viewers.

While there have been plenty of forgettable Thursday Night Football matchups this season, last week's game between the Lions and Cowboys was mostly exciting. Detroit won 44-30, but the game was closer than the final score might suggest.

Detroit took a 10-point lead heading into the second half of the fourth quarter, but Dallas trimmed the lead to seven with just under four minutes to play. The Cowboys couldn't stop the Lions' offense, though, and Detroit sealed the win with a touchdown.

▶️ Full Cowboys-Lions Recap

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This week, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will take on the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday Night Football.