The Nielsen Rating's Top 20 TV Shows for October 5 - 11. The first number is the ranking, the second number is the season average, then the show name and network. The last number represents the number of viewers in millions. An asterisk * indicates a tie.| Rank | Season average | Show name | Network | Viewers in millions | Season-to-date average |
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| 1. | 1 | NCIS | CBS | 20.7 | 21.5 |
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| 2. | 5 | Dancing with the Stars | ABC | 16.4 | 17.3 |
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| 3. | 3 | NCIS: Los Angeles | CBS | 16.3 | 18.1 |
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| 4. | 2 | Colts/Titans | NBC | 16.0 | 19.8 |
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| 5. | 7 | CSI | CBS | 14.9 | 16.4 |
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| 6. | 8 | The Mentalist | CBS | 14.7 | 16.2 |
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| 7. | 14 | 60 Minutes | CBS | 14.5 | 14.3 |
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| 8. | 9 | Criminal Minds | CBS | 14.1 | 15.4 |
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| * | 4 | Grey's Anatomy | ABC | 14.1 | 17.4 |
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| 10. | 5 | House | Fox | 13.7 | 17.2 |
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| * | 14 | The Good Wife | CBS | 13.7 | 14.3 |
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| 12. | 12 | CSI: Miami | CBS | 13.4 | 14.5 |
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| * | 12 | Desperate Housewives | ABC | 13.4 | 14.5 |
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| 14. | 14 | Two and a Half Men | CBS | 13.3 | 14.2 |
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| 15. | 18 | Big Bang Theory | CBS | 12.5 | 13.5 |
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| 16. | 17 | CSI: NY | CBS | 12.4 | 14.0 |
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| * | 19 | Dancing with the Stars Results | ABC | 12.4 | 12.7 |
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| 18. | 9 | Sunday Night NFL Pre-kick | NBC | 12.3 | 15.5 |
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| 19. | 20 | Survivor | CBS | 11.7 | 12.0 |
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| 20. | 24 | Amazing Race | CBS | 10.5 | 10.7 |
| * | | Prime College Football | CBS | 10.5 | |
