The game on Thursday night between the Buffalo Bills and the Miami Dolphins drew an average of 14.96 million viewers, making it the third most-watched game on Amazon Prime Video since it began broadcasting prime-time games in 2022.
Despite the Bills taking a big lead in the first half and winning 31-10, the game held strong viewership numbers. Nielsen reported that the highest number of viewers peaked at 18.09 million during the second quarter.
These Nielsen figures are preliminary and come only from their ratings panel. The “Big Data + Panel” figures, which include measurements from set-top boxes, smart TVs, and other streaming services, will be available on Monday.
The record for Prime Video viewership is held by the game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Dallas Cowboys on November 30, 2023, with 15.26 million viewers.
Last season’s opening game, featuring the Minnesota Vikings and the Philadelphia Eagles, had an average viewership of 15.06 million.
The first game of Week 2 continues the strong start to the NFL season, with the league averaging 21.0 million viewers per game in the opening week. This is the highest viewership for Week 1 since Nielsen started measuring electronic viewing in 1988.
