'Desperate Housewives' is the night's top show, but NBC's stronger overall

Fast National ratings for Sunday, Sept. 28, 2008

ABC got a solid premiere from "Desperate Housewives" Sunday night, but it wasn't enough to dislodge NBC from the top of the ratings heap.

NBC scored an 8.2 rating/13 share for the night (which may change some because of its live NFL telecast), narrowly beating ABC's 7.8/12. CBS, 6.9/11, finished third, while FOX, which also had some live sports, drew a 6.4/10. The CW was way back at 0.9/1.

In the adults 18-49 demographic, NBC's 5.2 rating led the way. FOX, 4.6, beat out ABC, 4.4, for second. CBS drew a 2.6, and The CW fell below the 1.0 mark.

Late-afternoon NFL games and "The OT" combined for a 9.5/16 on FOX at 7 p.m. CBS took second with NFL overruns "60 Minutes," 7.7/13. The season premiere of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," 4.5/8, put ABC in third, ahead of "Football Night in America," 3.8/7, on NBC. The CW aired a "One Tree Hill" repeat.

NBC took the lead at 8 p.m. with "Sunday Night Football," 9.2/14. "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" rose to 7.4/11 on ABC. The conclusion of "60 Minutes" and the season premiere of "The Amazing Race" scored a 6.2/10 for CBS. Premieres of "The Simpsons," 5.6/9, and "King of the Hill," 4.2/6, were fourth overall for FOX and second in the 18-49 demo. The CW went with "Privileged."

At 9 p.m., the "Desperate Housewives" premiere delivered an 11.4/17, down some from last season's premiere but still good enough to top NBC's NFL broadcast, 10.1/15. "The Amazing Race" and "Cold Case" averaged 7.3/11 for CBS. "Family Guy," 5.5/9, and "American Dad," 4.2/6, held steady for FOX, while The CW finished its night with "America's Next Top Model."

NBC reclaimed the lead at 10 p.m. with its coverage of the Chicago Bears-Philadelphia Eagles game, 9.5/15. "Brothers & Sisters" debuted to an 8.0/13 on ABC, while "Cold Case" and "The Unit" delivered a 6.2/10 for CBS.

Ratings information is taken from fast national data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are preliminary and subject to change, especially in the case of live telecasts.