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Patriots-Eagles Preseason Game Delivers Highest Local TV Rating of Summer

Fueled by the 2018 preseason debut of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and a rematch of last year’s thrilling Super Bowl LII showdown against the Philadelphia Eagles, New England…

Aug 16, 2018; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. (91) pressures Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles (9) during the first quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports

Fueled by the 2018 preseason debut of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and a rematch of last year's thrilling Super Bowl LII showdown against the Philadelphia Eagles, New England tuned into Thursday's preseason head-to-head at a summer-best rate.

Broadcast on WBZ, and with 98.5 The Sports Hub's Bob Socci and Scott Zolak on the call, the broadcast of Thursday's Eagles-Patriots game was the most-watched event of the summer, with more viewers than the highest-rated Red Sox-Yankees game of the summer, the World Cup Final, Game 4 of the NBA Finals and the MLB All-Star Game.

In a combined total of WBZ-CBS and WMUR-ABC stations in the Boston (Manchester) DMA, the game delivered a 17.8 household rating, 33 market share and averaged 599,400 viewers. By comparison, ratings were 48 percent higher than last year’s Week 2 numbers, a Saturday night matchup with the Houston Texans. Ratings peaked at 8:45 p.m. on Thursday night with a 21.9 household rating, 38 market share and 761,400 viewers in the combined DMA.

Thursday’s broadcast generated a local household rating of 14.6 in Boston, which is the highest rating for a Patriots Week 2 preseason game since 2013. It also finished as the week’s top-rated program in the Boston market with 483,500 viewers.

As mentioned, that viewer count was higher than Aug. 2's Red Sox-Yankees game (370.9 thousand viewers), France against Croatia (291.5 thousand viewers), Game 4 between the Cavaliers and Warriors (262 thousand viewers), and the 240.3 thousand viewers that tuned into the 2018 MLB All-Star Game (which featured countless Red Sox players).

Ty Anderson is 98.5 The Sports Hub’s friendly neighborhood straight-edge kid. Ty has been covering the Bruins (and other Boston teams) since 2010, has been a member of the PHWA since 2013, and went left to right across your radio dial and joined The Sports Hub in 2018. Ty also writes about all New England sports from Patriots football to the Boston Celtics and Boston Red Sox.