1/23 – Giants’ Win Seen in 33.4 Percent of U.S. Homes

The New York Giants’ 20-17 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers drew the best preliminary television rating for a National Football League conference championship since 1995. Yesterday’s National Football Conference title game at Candlestick Park in San Francisco was seen on Fox in 33.4 percent of homes in the top 56 U.S. television markets, Ileana Pena, a spokeswoman for the News Corp. (NWSA) network, said in an e- mail. That makes it the highest-rated conference title game since the 49ers beat the Dallas Cowboys 38-28 in January 1995. That contest drew a major-market rating of 34.2. The Giants’ victory drew an 11 percent better rating than last year’s NFC championship between the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears, which earned a 30 rating while airing earlier in the day. New York topped the 49ers 7:54 into overtime on a 31-yard field goal by Lawrence Tynes. The kick came after the Giants recovered a fumbled punt by Kyle Williams at the 49ers’ 24-yard- line, according to Bloomberg.