AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel
This week’s Monday Night Football game, in whichBuffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin experienced cardiac arrest while on the gridiron, was the most-watched in the history of the ESPN telecast.
The game drew around 23.8 million viewers, according to Nielsen.
On the ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC platforms combined, the contest drew 23,788,000 viewers – 1,949,000 more viewers than the previous record of the most-watched MNF, which was the Oct. 5, 2009 game between the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings.
Monday Night Football has been on ESPN since 2006, having previously aired only on ABC — which still occasionally televises a simulcast, as they did this week.
Hamlin fell to the ground after tackling Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins in the game between the Bills and Bengals in Cincinnati. CPR was administered to Hamlin by medical personnel for 10 minutes. The game was temporarily suspended before being indefinitely postponed. Hamlin is currently in critical condition at University of Cincinnati Medical Center. In a brand new update Thursday morning, doctors say Hamlin has shown “
Whether the Bills-Bengals game will resume has yet to be determined. The NFL has said the game would not resume this week. Week 18, the final week of the NFL regular season, will go on as planned.