Week 1 Ratings Predictions

Well it's that time again. What will the week 1 tv ratings look like? With the new ratings methodology Nielsen is utilizing, sports ratings have seen on average 5-8% increase from previous year. Here's my week 1 prediction. Louisville-Birmingham on Fox: The #1 TV market vs the city that's trending first in google trends currently. I'm afraid this game might get out of reach in the second half but should still see a nice improvement over last seasons opening ratings. 750k DC-St. Louis on ESPN: Biggest rivalry in the league but the early start might hurt some. Kinda wish this matchup was on Fox as opposed to the Texas Showdown. 575k Houston-Dallas on Fox: This feels like it should be more of a rivalry than it is. Don't really expect much offense here and most likely the worst crowd of the weekend. 700k Orlando-Columbus on ESPN: Primetime in Orlando with a team that seems to be gaining some steam in their market after a bit of a slow start ticket and marketing wise. My pick for game of the week. 620k. Overall week 1 average: 661.25