nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for sunday, september 26, 2010)

Here are the highlights of the 18 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

NBC (13.48 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.3, #1) continued its Sunday reign last night with its coverage of "Sunday Night Football" (15.93 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 6.5, #1). Leading off the evening was "Football Night in America #1" (6.05 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 2.0, #17), "Football Night in America #2" (8.68 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T10) and "Football Night in America #3" (13.43 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 5.2, #2).

CBS (13.27 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.9, #2) then claimed the silver with its combination of (slot numbers only) "NFL Overrun" (17.02 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.1, #3), "60 Minutes" (13.94 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T10), "The Amazing Race 17" (11.15 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 3.7, #T7) and "Undercover Boss" (10.90 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 3.6, #9).

Next up was FOX (7.60 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.5, #3) with its mix of "The Simpsons" (7.76 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 3.7, #T7), "The Cleveland Show" (6.60 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 3.1, #12), "Family Guy" (8.85 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 4.3, #5) and another "Family Guy" (9.41 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 4.7, #4). Leading off the evening were repeats of "The Simpsons" (7.65 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 2.9, #14) and another "The Simpsons" (5.35 million viewers, #18; adults 18-49: 2.4, #16).

And finally, the season premieres of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (5.54 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 1.5, #18), another "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (8.40 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 2.5, #15), "Desperate Housewives" (12.83 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 4.2, #6) and "Brothers & Sisters" (9.64 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 3.0, #13) on ABC (9.10 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.8, #4) rounded out the evening.

Here are the highlights of the 15 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (9/27/09):

"Sunday Night Football" (14.57 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 5.6, #1) lifted NBC (13.48 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.2, #1) to victory on Sunday. Leading into said coverage were its pre-game specials "Football Night in America #1" (7.71 million viewers, #18; adults 18-49: 2.8, #17), "Football Night in America #2" (9.95 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 3.9, #9) and "Football Night in America #3" (11.96 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 4.6, #T5).

FOX (7.48 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.7, #2) then claimed a distant second place with its mix of "NFL Overrun/Brothers" (6.26 million viewers, #21; adults 18-49: 2.5, #19) and a repeat of "Brothers" (3.73 million viewers, #22; adults 18-49: 1.7, #22) followed by the season premieres of "The Simpsons" (8.21 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 4.2, #8), "The Cleveland Show" (9.42 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 4.9, #4), "Family Guy" (10.17 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 5.2, #T2) and "American Dad" (7.12 million viewers, #20; adults 18-49: 4.6, #T5).

Next up was CBS (11.72 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.3, #3) with its combination of (half-hour results only): "NFL Overrun/60 Minutes" (17.50 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.2, #T2), "60 Minutes" (14.95 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.1, #T14), "60 Minutes/The Amazing Race 15 (1)" (12.97 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 3.4, #10), "The Amazing Race 15 (1)" (10.35 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T11), "The Amazing Race 15 (1)/The Amazing Race 15 (2)" (9.98 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T11), "The Amazing Race 15 (2)" (9.89 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 3.3, #T11), "The Amazing Race 15 (2)/Cold Case" (9.71 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 2.6, #18) and "Cold Case" (8.38 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 1.9, #21).

And finally, ABC (10.09 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.2, #4) dropped to fourth place despite the season premieres of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (7.30 million viewers, #19; adults 18-49: 2.1, #20), another "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (10.48 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 3.1, #T14), "Desperate Housewives" (13.24 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 4.6, #T5) and "Brothers & Sisters" (9.33 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 3.0, #16).

Source: Nielsen Media Research