Texans-Ravens was ESPN's most-watched NFL game of ALL-TIME, network reveals... with 31.8 million fans tuning in to watch Lamar Jackson's incredible performance

ESPN's five-most watched games ever have all aired in the previous 13 months Saturday's game best all divisional playoff games since 2015 except Chiefs-Jags'DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news

The AFC Divisional matchup between the Texans and Ravens on Saturday turned into ESPN’s most-watched NFL game of all-time, the network revealed, as an estimated 31.8million fans tuned in to watch Lamar Jackson’s incredible performance.

What’s more is, that the game’s audience peaked at 36.2million viewers in the third quarter (6:30-6:45 p.m. ET), according to Nielsen.

ESPN’s five-most watched games ever have all aired in the previous 13 months. That includes multiple Monday Night Football (MNF) games amongst the records. ESPN’s three most-recent playoff games are also its three most-watched NFL games ever.

The Texans-Ravens’ 31.8M viewers also marks Disney’s most-watched NFL game, excluding Super Bowls. The audience of 31,767,000 viewers bested all 24 Disney NFL Playoff games in the previous 28 years, including 14 exclusively on ABC (1996-2005), nine available on ABC and ESPN (2016-23) and one solely on ESPN (2015).

The game also surpassed every regular season game exclusively on ABC since 1996, when Disney acquired the channel, along with ESPN.

Ravens-Texans peaked at 36.2million viewers in the third quarter (6:30-6:45 p.m. ET), Saturday

Texans-Ravens could now potentially best all early divisional playoff games dating back to 2015, except last season’s Jaguars-Chiefs, which was watched on by 32.3M fans.

ESPN could surpass that viewership as well, needing only to boost its audience by two percent (500,000 viewers).

The network’s record-breaking playoff viewership follows a history-making fall for MNF audiences.

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson ended the night with two TD passes and a QB rating of 93.9

The 2023 MNF season is the franchise’s most watched since the 2000 NFL season, with viewership surpassing each of the previous 18 seasons in the ESPN era (2006 – present) and the five seasons leading into that era when MNF aired singularly on ABC.

The franchise was up 29 percent year-over-year.

The Ravens will now host the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game on Sunday, January 28, with record-breaking figures set to kick on, as Jackson will face two-time Super Bowl champion and quarterback, Patrick Mahomes.

Jackson threw two touchdown passes and ran for two scores against Houston. He ended the game with a passing completion of 72.7 percent (16 of 22), a QB rating of 93.9 and 152 passing yards.