ESPN happy with
Pro Bowl ratingsAlthough down from last year,
the ratings were the network’s
fourth-highest of the past year
Sunday's telecast of the Pro Bowl went up against a double-team that was sure to lower the number of viewers from the previous year.
Cable network ESPN broadcasted the game rather than over-the-air ABC, and in most markets the game went up against the Grammy Awards on CBS.
The Pro Bowl got a 4.77 rating, which translates into viewership in around 4.24 million households. That's down from 6.3 million last year when the game was on ABC.
But an ESPN spokesman said the network is happy with the rating.
"It was a tremendous night for ESPN," said Dave Nagle of the network's communications department.
The ratings were the fourth-highest for ESPN over the past year, Nagle said. Only two baseball playoff games and an "NFL Primetime" telecast did better, he said.
"It was tremendous that we were able to hold such an audience for a game (telecast) that went more than four hours," Nagle said.
ESPN televised the Pro Bowl from 1988 to 1994, the first seven years of its contract with the NFL. The deal to do the game this time was announced for one year, Nagle said.
