TV Ratings: ‘60 Minutes’ Is Both Up and Down in Week 2

The ratings for Sunday’s 60 Minutes are a tale of two comparisons. The CBS newsmagazine improved on its numbers from a year ago, but it fell off a little week to week in the absence of a big lead-in from the NFL.

Good news first: The Sept. 20 edition of 60 Minutes averaged 6.77 million viewers and about 1.1 million adults 25-54, the core demographic for news programming. Both figures improved on the second episode of the 2025-26 season (6.45 million viewers, about 915,000 adults 25-54), growing by 5 percent and 18 percent.

The headline story was an interview with Patrick Clancy, the ex-husband of Lindsay Clancy — whose trial in Massachusetts on charges she killed their three children ended in a hung jury. The case has been followed intensely online and in social media, and 60 Minutes ‘ social numbers Sunday possibly reflect that: Content from the show drew 179.2 million views on Instagram, Facebook, X and TikTok, up from 116.7 million for the season premiere. Year to year, social views quadrupled.

The downside: 60 Minutes fell off by about 15 percent week to week, from 7.94 million viewers for its premiere. In adults 25-54, it slipped by 31 percent. That’s not a surprise, as CBS did not have the late-afternoon NFL showcase game on Sunday serving as a lead-in to 60 Minutes . The show’s 6.77 million viewers is pretty close to last fall’s episodes without NFL lead-ins (7.03 million).

CBS and Fox both posted big NFL numbers earlier in the day. CBS’ singleheader averaged 19.35 million viewers, the network’s highest singleheader total ever for week two of the NFL season. Fox’s 4:25 p.m. ET national telecast (primarily Commanders-Cowboys) averaged 27.21 million viewers, the biggest audience of the young NFL season so far.

In primetime, Sunday Night Football (Colts-Chiefs) averaged 24.3 million viewers across NBC and Peacock. That’s the biggest week two total for SNF since 2015.