45 Million Viewers Watched Tebow’s TD Pass in OT for Denver Victory Over Steelers

Tim Tebow … a network ratings dream …

Denver Broncos QB Tim Tebow is not only a “miracle worker” on the football field, he is a ratings bonanza for the networks. As Tebow was throwing an 80 yard catch and run pass to Demaryius Thomas in OT to defeat Pittsburgh 29-13 and throwing for 316 yards … CBS ratings went off the charts as a reported 45 million looked on.It was the highest rated AFC Wild card game since 1988 receiving a 25.9 rating.

The television ratings for Broncos-Steelers could provide a clue: The game pulled in a whopping 25.9 rating for CBS, becoming the highest-rated AFC wild-card game since 1988. (That was 24 years ago, pre-Internet and before a majority of Americans had cable or satellite.) Variety estimates 45 million people watched Tebow’s touchdown pass in overtime.

As fate would have it John Ourand of Sports Business Journal reports that the final quarter-hour television rating for the Broncos-Steelers game was, you guessed it, 31.6. You just can’t make this stuff up.

Can you imagine what the ratings will be when Tebow and the Broncos visit Foxboro, MA on Saturday night to play Tom Brady and the New England Patriots this weekend? This will be off the charts.