• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, August 9, 2010

Perhaps a harbinger of another potent ratings season for the NFL, the league's first preseason game set a six-year record Sunday.  

The Dallas-Cincinnati game notched a 7.6 household rating and 13 share in overnight numbers on NBC, the highest for a preseason match-up since 2004.

The broadcast competed against a Yankees-Red Sox game on ESPN, stemming worries that pre-season football had become somewhat irrelevant.

The rating was also the best for the first preseason game since 2004 and was up 31% over 2009's opener.

Not surprisingly, ratings in Cincinnati and Dallas were the strongest in the country, with 22 household numbers in each, as well as shares either at or near 40.

A sign how tough things have been for NBC: The network's rating Sunday night was its highest in metered markets since the closing ceremonies of the Vancouver Olympics.

As with most preseason games, stars such as Dallas quarterback Tony Romo played sparingly.