Monday Night Football Kicks-Off with New England Patriots vs. Miami Dolphins
Monday Night Football kicks-off its 42nd season with the New England Patriots traveling to Miami for an AFC East match-up. The game will be televised on ESPN, home to MNF since 2006.
In a unique stunt for the first week of the National Football League, ESPN will air a double-header for tonight’s MNF opener. The Pats vs. Dolphins game will air at 7pm (EST). Directly following the conclusion of that game ESPN will send its MNF coverage out west for the Oakland Raiders vs. Denver Broncos game.
It will be a long evening for NFL fans on the East Coast who plan on staying awake for both games. The Raiders/Broncos game is scheduled for a 10:15pm (EST) kick-off, most likely concluding near 2am.
This is only the third time there has been a scheduled double-header for Monday Night Football. The first two instances occurred in 2006 and 2007, the first two seasons ESPN owned the rights to MNF.
The four teams competing in tonight’s MNF season-opening extravaganza go back a long way with the iconic prime-time sports program. The Miami Dolphins will make its 75th appearance on MNF, the most appearances by any NFL team.
In addition, tonight’s double-header marks the 16th time the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos have matched-up against each other on MNF. This is the most times two teams have faced each other on MNF.
Finally, Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady will reach a monumental record tonight. Brady needs only four completions to reach the 3,000 mark for his career. The accomplishment will make Brady only the 15th quarterback in the NFL to reach that mark.
