From your article:
There are a number of reasons why Sunday Night Football could have underperformed in the ratings. For starters, last night’s game was forced to compete with the Emmys, which scored a 8.4/13 in the MM ratings. Secondly, the game itself wasn’t exactly audience friendly thanks to stout defensive performances from both teams. Lastly, many casual NFL fans have yet to forget about Vikings running back Adrian Peterson’s indictment for child abuse back in 2014.