Want proof the Cincinnati Bengals are one of the NFL’s biggest ticket items and that the Bengals-Kasnas City Chiefs rivalry is one of the league’s best new must-see showdowns?
Look no further than the viewing numbers from Cincinnati’s win over Kansas City in Week 13.
Sitting in the 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff slot, the rematch of the AFC title game reeled in 23.4 million viewers, per CBS’ numbers. A Jets-Vikings encounter earned just 13.6 million.
That makes the encounter the most-watched Week 13 national game in eight years, up nine percent from the year prior.
Call it what feels like just a little more proof the NFL and its broadcasters had no business keeping this game out of primetime. Back in early November, the NFL flexed Bengals-Steelers out of primetime so that Chargers-Chiefs could take the primetime stage, which meant the Chiefs could no longer be flexed to primetime later. That meant one of the highest-quality games of the year didn’t get a primetime slot.
Based on the numbers, that was a rough call by all involved — Bengals-Chiefs might be the new hottest rivalry in sports.
The #Bengals win over the #Chiefs averaged 23.4 million viewers on CBS.
The #Jets–#Vikings game had 13.6 million viewers.pic.twitter.com/T6uKSHkCsR
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) December 6, 2022
