Cardinals vs. Rams Delivers Highest Monday Night Football Viewership Since ESPN's Season Opener

Monday Night Football's game between the Rams and Cardinals delivered a staggering amount of viewers.

The hype leading up to the Los Angeles Rams and Arizona Cardinals Week 14 matchup brought enormous intrigue with two teams jockeying for position atop the NFC West standings.

However, just hours before game-time, the Rams were hit with the shocking news that cornerback Jalen Ramsey and tight end Tyler Higbee would join running back Darrell Henderson, right tackle Rob Havenstein and cornerback Dont'e Deayon on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

With the Rams' backs against the wall, the viewership of the game did not waver. 

The audience from Monday Night Football's telecast drew the largest viewership since the primetime season opener on ESPN between the Las Vegas Raiders and Baltimore Ravens, the network announced Wednesday

In totality, the Rams and Cardinals Week 14 game drew 15.9 million viewers, the second-best Monday Night Football audience in 27 games. It marked the highest consumed Monday night product in Week 14 since the 2013 season and was up 23% from last season's ratings.

Perhaps the interest in quarterback Kyler Murray, who had returned from his ankle injury in the week prior, attracted a surplus of eyeballs due to the fact that the Cardinals could clinch a playoff spot had they defeated the Rams.

Meanwhile, questions on the Rams entering the contest were warranted. They had lost three of the last four games, giving consumers a reason to wonder whether or not they could rebound. Ultimately, in a game the Rams were shorthanded, they returned back to their dominant form, knocking off the NFC's top team on primetime.


More from Ram Digest:

Nick Cothrel is the publisher of Ram Digest. Follow Nick and Ram Digest on Twitter @NickCothrel & @RamDigestSI for more Rams coverage.


Published
Nicholas Cothrel
NICHOLAS COTHREL

Nick Cothrel covers the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated.