ESPN to televise Monday night NFL wild-card playoff game for next five seasons
Written by Lucky Wilson | KGTO Writer on October 14, 2021
ESPN has signed a five-year agreement with the NFL to broadcast the Monday night game during the first weekend of the playoffs, beginning this season.
The announcement was made by ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro at the CAA World Congress of Sports. The NFL announced last month that it was moving the Saturday early-afternoon game on wild-card weekend to Monday night.
There will be two games on Saturday (4:35 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. ET), three on Sunday (1:05 p.m., 4:40 p.m., and 8:15 p.m. ET), and one on Monday (8:15 p.m. ET).
The Monday night game will also air on ABC, and ESPN2 will feature a MegaCast with Peyton and Eli Manning.
CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus said before the season started that CBS will have the Sunday late-afternoon game, which will again feature a kids-focused broadcast on Nickelodeon. NBC is expected to have the Sunday night game as one of its two that weekend.
CBS also has two games, while Fox and ESPN/ABC have one apiece. ESPN and ABC will also have a Saturday doubleheader the final week of the regular season.
Beginning in 2023, ESPN will also televise an NFL divisional-round playoff game while continuing to air the Monday night wild-card game.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
