ABC Shows Some Life

“Monday Night Football” gave ABC a jump on the television season that officially begins next week, combining with telecasts of the movies “Notting Hill” and “Liar, Liar” to help the network score a rare second-place weekly finish, based on viewing estimates issued Tuesday by Nielsen Media Research. ABC is seeking momentum as it heads into the season, having languished in the ratings throughout much of the summer.

The network--which ranked first last week among adults 18 to 49, the primary demographic monitored by advertisers--also took advantage of reruns on competitors to launch “The Drew Carey Show” and “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” in its new Monday time slots.

Led by multiple episodes of “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS topped the standings in overall viewing for the 10th time in the last 13 weeks, since the NBA playoffs concluded on NBC. The network also recorded the highest ratings on Sept. 11 with a rerun of its documentary “9/11.”

The CBS unscripted series “Big Brother” also was a highlight, managing to post its highest Thursday rating of the summer.