NBC opened its NFL preseason slate with an eight-year low.

Thursday’s Falcons/Dolphins NFL preseason game earned a 3.8 final rating and 5.9 million viewers on NBC, the network’s lowest rated and least-watched preseason telecast since Jaguars/Washington in 2008, which also aired on a Thursday night (2.0, 2.8M).

Every other preseason game on NBC since the network reacquired rights has aired in the network’s customary Sunday Night Football window.

As was the case in 2008, the special Thursday night telecast was necessitated by NBC’s Olympics coverage, which occupied the schedule for the first two weeks of the preseason. The broadcast networks generally do not air games in the final week of the preseason, forcing NBC to air both of its games in week three.

In other action Thursday, Cowboys/Seahawks scored 1.1 million viewers on NFL Network; there was no comparable window last year.

(Thu. numbers via Programming Insider, ShowBuzz Daily)