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NFL on ESPN
National television broadcasts of the National Football League (NFL) first aired on ESPN in 1980, when the network broadcast the 1980 NFL draft. ESPN did not air live NFL games until 1987, when it acquired the rights to Sunday Night Football. In 2006, ESPN lost the rights to Sunday Night Football and began airing Monday Night Football (MNF) instead. Under its current broadcasting deals lasting through 2033, ESPN has live coverage of MNF, sister broadcast network ABC airs selected exclusive or simulcast MNF games, and ESPN+ streams one exclusive game. ESPN/ABC also has a Saturday doubleheader during the last week of the regular season, the Pro Bowl games, the NFL Draft, one Wild Card round playoff game, one Divisional round playoff game, and the Super Bowl in 2027 and 2031. Studio programming includes Monday Night Countdown, Sunday NFL Countdown, NFL Live, NFL Primetime, NFL Matchup, Monday Blitz, and Fantasy Football Now.
Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue credits ESPN with raising the "profile" of the league, by turning "a potential six- or seven-hour television experience into a twelve-hour television experience," factoring in both the network's pregame show Sunday NFL Countdown and Sunday Night Football.
In 1979, several months after the founding of ESPN, then ESPN President Chet Simmons asked the NFL if ESPN could air the NFL Draft. NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle, despite questions about viewership potential, granted ESPN the rights. The first draft ESPN aired was in 1980. Bob Ley hosted the initial coverage from Bristol, Connecticut. Howard Balzer, Upton Bell and Vince Papale joined Ley as studio analysts while Joe Thomas and four reporters were on site at the NFL Draft in New York City. Despite ESPN only reaching 4 million homes at the time, the NFL considered the initial NFL Draft broadcast a success and ESPN has aired the NFL Draft every year since. In 1988, the NFL moved the draft from weekdays to the weekend and ESPN's ratings of the coverage improved dramatically.
As part of its new television package in 1987, the NFL granted ESPN the rights to air a series of Sunday night games, which were to air over the second half of the regular season. The NFL thus became the last major North American professional sports league to begin airing its games on cable television. However, the games were typically simulcast on regular over-the-air television stations in each participating team's local market, so that households without cable television could still see the telecasts of their local team. While ABC had been airing occasional Sunday night NFL games (usually one per season) under its Monday Night Football banner since 1978, the concept of playing a regular series of Sunday night professional football games on ESPN was originally a concept designed for the United States Football League (USFL). As part of the abortive 1986 USFL season, ESPN was to carry a weekly Sunday night game throughout the fall season.
As part of the league's television contract renewal with ABC in 1989, ABC was awarded the television rights to Super Bowl XXV and Super Bowl XXIX, and the first round of NFL playoffs. The Monday Night Football announcing team anchored the telecasts, except for the first of two Wild Card Playoff games, in which ESPN's Sunday Night NFL crew of Mike Patrick and Joe Theismann presided over that telecast. However, the original crew for one of the two Wild Card Playoff games from 1990 to 1995 consisted of Brent Musburger and Dick Vermeil (both of whom did college football broadcasts for ABC during those two seasons).
Following The Walt Disney Company's purchase of both ESPN and ABC in 1996, the two network's sports departments merged in 1997. Beginning with the 1997 season, the ESPN Sunday Night Football crew called the first Monday Night Football game of the season on ABC, with the ABC Monday Night Football crew calling the second game. ESPN provided wraparound studio programming, with part of the pre and postgame airing on ABC, and ESPN's Ron Jaworski often appeared from the studio for extra analysis during the first game. This arrangement lasted from 1997 through 2005, except for 2002 when ESPN/ABC's college football crew did the early game. Super Bowls on ABC in this period were treated as ESPN events.
In 2003, ABC and the NFL dropped the Monday Night Football game for the final week of the regular season. The move, which had been in effect for the first eight years of the broadcast (1970–1977), was the result of declining ratings, as well as problems involved for potential playoff teams, as there was a potential of only four days rest between their final regular season game and first-round playoff game. ABC replaced the telecast with an opening weekend Thursday night game, and in exchange ESPN got a Saturday night game on the final weekend.
After the 2005 season, ESPN ended this package in favor of picking up the broadcast rights to Monday Night Football from ABC. NBC picked up the rights to ESPN's Sunday night games. To replace Sunday Night Football ESPN moved its late-season Sunday Night Baseball broadcasts back to the network and replaced most of the rest of the open weeks with other sports telecasts.
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NFL on ESPN
National television broadcasts of the National Football League (NFL) first aired on ESPN in 1980, when the network broadcast the 1980 NFL draft. ESPN did not air live NFL games until 1987, when it acquired the rights to Sunday Night Football. In 2006, ESPN lost the rights to Sunday Night Football and began airing Monday Night Football (MNF) instead. Under its current broadcasting deals lasting through 2033, ESPN has live coverage of MNF, sister broadcast network ABC airs selected exclusive or simulcast MNF games, and ESPN+ streams one exclusive game. ESPN/ABC also has a Saturday doubleheader during the last week of the regular season, the Pro Bowl games, the NFL Draft, one Wild Card round playoff game, one Divisional round playoff game, and the Super Bowl in 2027 and 2031. Studio programming includes Monday Night Countdown, Sunday NFL Countdown, NFL Live, NFL Primetime, NFL Matchup, Monday Blitz, and Fantasy Football Now.
Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue credits ESPN with raising the "profile" of the league, by turning "a potential six- or seven-hour television experience into a twelve-hour television experience," factoring in both the network's pregame show Sunday NFL Countdown and Sunday Night Football.
In 1979, several months after the founding of ESPN, then ESPN President Chet Simmons asked the NFL if ESPN could air the NFL Draft. NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle, despite questions about viewership potential, granted ESPN the rights. The first draft ESPN aired was in 1980. Bob Ley hosted the initial coverage from Bristol, Connecticut. Howard Balzer, Upton Bell and Vince Papale joined Ley as studio analysts while Joe Thomas and four reporters were on site at the NFL Draft in New York City. Despite ESPN only reaching 4 million homes at the time, the NFL considered the initial NFL Draft broadcast a success and ESPN has aired the NFL Draft every year since. In 1988, the NFL moved the draft from weekdays to the weekend and ESPN's ratings of the coverage improved dramatically.
As part of its new television package in 1987, the NFL granted ESPN the rights to air a series of Sunday night games, which were to air over the second half of the regular season. The NFL thus became the last major North American professional sports league to begin airing its games on cable television. However, the games were typically simulcast on regular over-the-air television stations in each participating team's local market, so that households without cable television could still see the telecasts of their local team. While ABC had been airing occasional Sunday night NFL games (usually one per season) under its Monday Night Football banner since 1978, the concept of playing a regular series of Sunday night professional football games on ESPN was originally a concept designed for the United States Football League (USFL). As part of the abortive 1986 USFL season, ESPN was to carry a weekly Sunday night game throughout the fall season.
As part of the league's television contract renewal with ABC in 1989, ABC was awarded the television rights to Super Bowl XXV and Super Bowl XXIX, and the first round of NFL playoffs. The Monday Night Football announcing team anchored the telecasts, except for the first of two Wild Card Playoff games, in which ESPN's Sunday Night NFL crew of Mike Patrick and Joe Theismann presided over that telecast. However, the original crew for one of the two Wild Card Playoff games from 1990 to 1995 consisted of Brent Musburger and Dick Vermeil (both of whom did college football broadcasts for ABC during those two seasons).
Following The Walt Disney Company's purchase of both ESPN and ABC in 1996, the two network's sports departments merged in 1997. Beginning with the 1997 season, the ESPN Sunday Night Football crew called the first Monday Night Football game of the season on ABC, with the ABC Monday Night Football crew calling the second game. ESPN provided wraparound studio programming, with part of the pre and postgame airing on ABC, and ESPN's Ron Jaworski often appeared from the studio for extra analysis during the first game. This arrangement lasted from 1997 through 2005, except for 2002 when ESPN/ABC's college football crew did the early game. Super Bowls on ABC in this period were treated as ESPN events.
In 2003, ABC and the NFL dropped the Monday Night Football game for the final week of the regular season. The move, which had been in effect for the first eight years of the broadcast (1970–1977), was the result of declining ratings, as well as problems involved for potential playoff teams, as there was a potential of only four days rest between their final regular season game and first-round playoff game. ABC replaced the telecast with an opening weekend Thursday night game, and in exchange ESPN got a Saturday night game on the final weekend.
After the 2005 season, ESPN ended this package in favor of picking up the broadcast rights to Monday Night Football from ABC. NBC picked up the rights to ESPN's Sunday night games. To replace Sunday Night Football ESPN moved its late-season Sunday Night Baseball broadcasts back to the network and replaced most of the rest of the open weeks with other sports telecasts.