By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE Raw on Monday night scored a 3.14 rating, down from a 3.30 rating last week and 3.48 rating on January 31 following the Royal Rumble.

In the first hour, Raw scored a 3.03 rating and averaged 4.70 million viewers. In the second hour, Raw improved to a 3.25 rating and averaged 4.82 million viewers.

As we reported earlier, "The Rock" Dwayne Johnson's Raw TV return in the 20-minute over-run segment averaged 5.70 million viewers from 11:00 to 11:20 p.m. EST. From the first hour to the over-run, Raw's viewership increased by one million viewers.

Overall for the night, Raw's TV rating was down 4.9 percent and TV viewership was down 3.4 percent compared to last week's Raw.

However, in key demographics, Raw was up 5.0 percent in adults 18-49 and four percent in males 18-49 vs. last week.

The following is a week-by-week break down of Raw TV ratings in 2011 showing a steady climb to a 3.48 rating for the Raw after the Royal Rumble and a subsequent two-week decline since January 31.

Jan. 3 - 3.06 rating
Jan. 10 - 3.05 rating
Jan. 17 - 3.28 rating
Jan. 24 - 3.29 rating
Jan. 31 - 3.48 rating
Feb. 7 - 3.30 rating
Feb. 14 - 3.14 rating

Caldwell's Analysis: Disappointing overall number considering they hyped the WrestleMania 27 guest host reveal a week in advance and there should be some momentum going into WrestleMania season, but it captures an overall softness toward the current product from the general viewing audience, which is why they needed a spark like The Rock returning to save WrestleMania 27.

Next week's rating should be up like the night after the Rumble for follow-up on Rock's return, that feeling of "find out what happened at the Chamber PPV that general viewers aren't going to order," and the official start to WrestleMania 27 hype. If the number doesn't increase significantly next week, then WWE should be concerned.

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