Monday Night Ratings Hit a Low

The Philadelphia Eagles seemed to lose interest in Monday night’s game against the St. Louis Rams after one series -- and so did viewers.

The national rating peaked at 11.7 a half-hour into the game, and it was down to a 9.5 by the end. Generally, the rating is higher at the end of a game.

ABC’s final Monday night game of the season averaged only a 10.6 rating and an 18 share of the audience. ABC finished the season with an all-time low 11.0 rating for “Monday Night Football.” But the series ranked seventh among prime-time shows, marking the 15th consecutive year it has ranked in the top 10.

The previous low for “Monday Night Football” was 11.4 in 2002. Last season’s average was 11.5.

Monday night’s game got an 11.6/19 in L.A., where it peaked at 13.3 at 7:45 p.m.

Because his team already had clinched home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, Philadelphia Coach Andy Reid pulled quarterback Donovan McNabb and most of his other starters after the Eagles scored on their first series.

The Eagles’ reserves gained only 92 yards on offense the rest of the game and did not score in the 20-7 loss.

Beginning in 2006, ABC will have the flexibility to change its “Monday Night” games in the final seven weeks of the season. How that will work has not been determined, but a preliminary plan would give the network the option of taking a doubleheader Sunday game away from CBS or Fox with about two weeks’ advance notice.

Kansas City Coach Dick Vermeil said he understood Reid’s decision to rest his regulars.

“You just cannot take a chance of losing a difference-maker in a game that no longer has playoff implications,” Vermeil told Fox Sports radio. “You can get criticized for it, but I’ll tell you this, the critics and everybody else criticize you more when you play a starter who gets hurt in a game such as that. They call you an idiot for playing him.

“It’s a no-win situation.”

ABC commentator John Madden criticized Reid for his decision to rest his starters -- and he took some criticism for that.

“John Madden is looking at it from the perspective of good ratings,” Deion Sanders told James Brown on the Sporting News radio network. “Andy Reid is looking out for the future of the Philadelphia Eagles.... Great move by Andy Reid.”

-- Larry Stewart

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Ben Roethlisberger’s ribs are only bruised, and Pittsburgh Steeler Coach Bill Cowher listed the rookie quarterback as questionable for Sunday’s regular-season finale at Buffalo.

The game is meaningless for the Steelers, who have clinched home-field advantage for the playoffs in the AFC. The Bills are fighting for a wild-card playoff berth.

“The last thing you can do when you go into any football game is to diminish the importance of it,” Cowher said Tuesday.

The Steelers are riding a franchise-record 13-game win streak, while the Bills are riding a six-game win streak that has put them in position to earn a playoff berth after an 0-4 start.

The Bills need to beat the Steelers and have either the New York Jets or Denver Broncos lose in order to clinch a spot in the playoffs.

Roethlisberger was hurt Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens when he was driven into the turf by Terrell Suggs during a third-quarter touchdown pass to Jerame Tuman. Roethlisberger returned for three plays on the next series before leaving for good.

Cornerback Deshea Townsend has been ruled out of the Buffalo game because of broken bones in his hand. He is questionable for the first playoff game.

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Tennessee Titan quarterback Steve McNair underwent surgery to strengthen his bruised chest, which has plagued him most of the season. Titan Coach Jeff Fisher said the surgery went as well as expected.

McNair will spend at least a night in the hospital. The NFL’s co-most valuable player of 2003 needed the surgery even if he was never planning to play football again after three injuries to the area.

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The Denver Broncos placed running back Garrison Hearst on injured reserve because of a broken left hand.... The Dallas Cowboys will be without third-down back Richie Anderson for the season finale. He has a pinched nerve in his neck.