The Replacement Ref Disaster Was The Most Watched Monday Night Football So Far This Season: Last Week’s TV Ratings, In Context

A weekly feature wherein we contextualize TV ratings for national sports broadcasts. Data via Nielsen and Sports Business Journal's John Ourand. Viewership numbers represent approximate number of persons tuned to a given program; ratings share refers to the percentage of all households using a television who are turned into that program.

Monday, Sept. 24: Monday Night Football; Green Bay Packers at Seattle Seahawks (ESPN): 16.1 million viewers Sportscenter (ESPN): 6.5 million viewers [Note: Sportscenter drew a 5.0 overnight rating, its highest ever.] Dancing With The Stars (ABC): 14.1 million viewers

Tuesday, Sept. 25: No highly rated sporting events.

Wednesday, Sept. 26: Feherty Live (Golf Channel): 277,000 viewers Modern Family, season premiere (ABC): 14.4 million viewers

Thursday, Sept. 27: Thursday Night Football; Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens (NFL Network): 8.0 million viewers The Big Bang Theory (CBS): 15.7 million viewers

Friday, Sept. 28: Ryder Cup (ESPN): 2.0 million viewers CSI: NY, season premiere (CBS): 9.1 million viewers

Saturday, Sept. 29: NCAA football; Mississippi at Alabama (ESPN): 3.5 million viewers NCAA football; Wisconsin at Nebraska (ABC): 4.3 million viewers NCAA football; Texas at Oklahoma State (FOX): 3.8 million viewers Law & Order: SVU, rerun (NBC): 4.0 million viewers

Sunday, Sept. 30: Sunday Night Football; New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles (NBC): 22.8 million viewers Live From the Ryder Cup (Golf Channel): 445,000 viewers NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Dover (ESPN): 3.6 million viewers Real Housewives of New Jersey (Bravo): 3.5 million viewers