Did the Ravens sack Raw?
The Ravens couldn’t knock off the undefeated New England Patriots on Monday night, but their spirited upset bid might have played a role in taking down Raw’s rating.
This past Monday’s Raw, which went head-to-head with the football game on ESPN, did a 3.2 rating, which was down from last week’s 3.6. I was surprised at first by the decline, especially coming off a good show the previous week that included the return of Ric Flair. Then I saw a news release from ESPN and it started to make sense.
It turns out that the Ravens-Patriots game was the most-watched program in cable TV history. As it looked more and more like the Ravens would pull off the big upset, the ratings continued to grow. In the final minutes of the game, nearly one-third of all televisions being used were tuned to ESPN.
There is a crossover between the football and the wrestling crowd, so it would stand to reason that a game of that magnitude would cut into Raw’s audience. Now if the Raw rating doesn’t go up significantly this Monday, when a special three-hour episode featuring former stars such as Hulk Hogan and Steve Austin goes against a New Orleans Saints-Atlanta Falcons game, then WWE should definitely be concerned.
Comments
I admit it. I live in North Carolina and I missed the entire Orton-Michaels matchup because of the Ravens-Pats. I did see the Jericho-Umaga match, but as the game drew closer to the end, I dropped RAW entirely. I didn't figure I missed much. How many times have wee seen Orton-Michaels now?
Posted by: Lee | December 6, 2007 12:26 PM
only dim wits watch professional rassling
RESPONSE FROM KEVIN ECK: No, only dimwits don't know that dimwits is one word, not two.
Posted by: larry g | December 6, 2007 3:23 PM
Eck,
I was surprised Flair wasn't part of a raw episode from SC. What do you think thats all about?
RESPONSE FROM KEVIN ECK: I was surprised, too, but I do have a theory. I like the win-or-go-home story line, but for it to work -- especially if it is building to WrestleMania, which is nearly four months away -- Flair can't wrestle on TV every week because he'll burn through opponents too fast. Plus, and this is meant as no disrespect to Flair, at this point in his career, he shouldn't be wrestling on TV every week.
Posted by: John | December 6, 2007 9:54 PM