Patriots Rams Super Bowl
Cordarrelle Patterson #84 of the New England Patriots makes a catch against the Los Angeles Rams in the second half during Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on February 3, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. Harry How/Getty Images

There was a noticeable lack of buzz for Super Bowl LIII in the two weeks between the NFL’s conference championship games and the opening kickoff Sunday night. That appears to have been reflected in the number of people that watched the New England Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in a largely uneventful contest.

The 2019 Super Bowl drew a 44.9 overnight rating, marking the big game’s lowest number in a decade. The 2009 Super Bowl, which came down to the wire between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals, had a 42.1 rating.

Sunday’s game fell short of last year’s Super Bowl between the Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles, which drew a 47.4 overnight rating. The Super Bowl viewership fell from an average of 111.32 million people in 2017 to 103.39 million in 2018, indicating that this year’s final viewership numbers could be even lower.

This year’s AFC Championship Game drew a 31.2 rating. When the 2015 Super Bowl between the Patriots and Seattle Seahawks drew a record 114.44 million viewers, the game had a 49.7 overnight rating.

Super Bowl LIII was the lowest-scoring game in the contest’s 53-year history with just 16 total points. It was a stark contrast from last year’s game when the Eagles beat the Patriots 41-33. It marked the first time since 2008 that neither team reached the 20-point mark.

New England took a 3-0 lead into halftime. The game’s first and only touchdown wasn’t scored until there were just seven minutes left in regulation. The kicker from each team missed a field goal.

Tom Brady was far from spectacular in the win with 262 passing yards, no touchdowns and an interception. Jared Goff had one of the worst performances by a starting quarterback in Super Bowl history with a 57.9 passer rating. Goff threw for just 163 yards before the game’s final drive when New England had already secured the win.

Super Bowl LIII featured 667 yards of total offense. Los Angeles averaged 421.1 yards per game in the regular season.

The Super Bowl will still be the most-watched television event of the year by a wide margin.

National Football League