• Main Telecast on ESPN and ABC; Spanish-Language on ESPN Deportes
• ESPN+ Carries Between the Lines, Offering Analysis, Analytics and Odds Discussion
• Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli Debuts on ESPN2 and ESPN+
• Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown Return Alongside Fantasy Football Now

ESPN and The Walt Disney Company will christen the 2021 Monday Night Football season with an ambitious regular season, multi-network presentation. With the addition of ESPN+ to a previously announced lineup, five networks will provide four distinct fan viewing options, as ESPN’s signature MegaCast presents the Baltimore Ravens at Las Vegas Raiders on Sept. 13 at 8 p.m. ET. The MegaCast will present the first NFL regular season game with fans in Las Vegas and also begins ESPN’s 16th year televising Monday Night Football in the franchise’s 52nd season overall.

For the 2021 Monday Night Football debut, ESPN+ will now have two offerings, as Between the Lines will exclusively air on the service, while Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli will simulcast on ESPN+ and be televised on ESPN2. Those two offerings join the traditional telecast (ESPN and ABC) and the Spanish-language telecast (ESPN Deportes) to complete the Monday Night Football MegaCast.

Between the Lines will provide deep analysis, analytics and a betting-centric conversation featuring the NFL Live and Daily Wager casts, as the two shows reunite after successfully debuting the concept during ESPN and Disney’s 2021 Wild Card MegaCast. With the additional commentary serving as the backdrop for Ravens-Raiders, the offering will represent the first time a Monday Night Football presentation is available on ESPN+.

The Monday Night Football season debut will be streamed across devices on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ABC and NFL digital properties. The traditional English and Spanish-language telecasts and Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli  will also be streamed on mobile via NFL and Verizon Media properties.

ESPN and ABC Anchor the MegaCast with Traditional Telecast; ESPN Deportes Airs Spanish-Language Presentation
Fans watching the traditional telecast on both ESPN and ABC will be welcomed by Steve Levy, Brian Griese, Louis Riddick, Lisa Salters and John Parry into Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas as the broadcast team embarks on its second season together on Monday Night Football. For Salters, the 2021 season marks her 10th on MNF, extending her record as the longest-tenured sideline reporter in the franchise’s illustrious history. Levy is in his 29th year at ESPN, with Griese and Riddick in their 13th and ninth, respectively. Parry, the former Super Bowl referee, joined the network in 2019 as a rules analyst.

Elements surrounding the telecast include

• Earth, Wind & Fire will star in the show’s open.
• Billboard’s Artist of the Decade, Drake, will work with ESPN throughout the entire NFL season to curate music for select Monday Night Football games, including Week 1. More on the collaboration can be found here.
• Elements highlighting Las Vegas’ first game with fans will be highlighted.

ESPN Deportes will televise every Monday Night Football game once again this season, with Pablo Viruega and Eduardo Varela on the call, along with John Sutcliffe reporting.

Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli Debuts
Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli is a new, casual, non-traditional remote telecast anchored by the Super Bowl-winning Manning brothers. Airing on ESPN2 and streaming on ESPN+ for the Raiders-Ravens matchup, the alternate telecast will combine in-the-moment analysis, big picture NFL dialogue, knee-jerk reaction, historical perspective and more. Iconic NFL stars and current athletes, as well as celebrities, are expected to appear each week. Fans won’t miss a second of the action, as a multi-box viewing experience will ensure the game is always visible.

The alternate telecast option will debut in Week 1 and air 10 times this season, including Weeks 2 and 3. For nearly all telecasts, Peyton will be in Denver and Eli from New Jersey; however, for the Ravens-Raiders matchup, both brothers will be in the ESPN Seaport Studios in New York City due to a previous scheduling commitment.

NFL Live and Daily Wager Cast Provide A Different Approach on ESPN+
Between the Lines combines the cast of two daily ESPN shows, as Laura Rutledge, Mina Kimes, Dan Orlovsky and Marcus Spears from NFL Live and Doug Kezirian, Joe Fortenbaugh and Tyler Fulghum from Daily Wager will all play significant roles and, at times, interact with each other during the telecast. The Ravens-Raiders telecast will be supplemented by an array of data and statistics, including live odds, as the team provides their insights in a free-flowing format, inclusive of broad strokes odds conversation. The two groups will originate from their home studios, with NFL Live in Bristol and Daily Wager in Las Vegas.

ESPN is Home to the Pregame Shows: Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown Return
ESPN’s entrenched NFL pregame shows, Sunday NFL Countdown (10 a.m. – 1 p.m.) and Monday Night Countdown (6-8 p.m.), return with Sunday NFL Countdown remaining at, but moving inside, the Seaport Studios in New York City and Monday Night Countdown returning to its on-location norm, adding to the festivities at Allegiant Stadium.

The roster for both shows is familiar to fans, as Sam Ponder hosts Sunday NFL Countdown and Suzy Kolber returns to Monday Night Countdown. Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss will be on both shows, as will senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter. Joining Ponder, Moss, and Schefter on Sundays are three-time Super Bowl champion Tedy Bruschi, 18-year NFL quarterback and soon-to-be Seahawks’ Ring of Honor honoree Matt Hasselbeck, former NFL head coach Rex Ryan, and Senior NFL Insider Chris Mortensen.

On Mondays, Pro Football Hall of Famer and Super Bowl-winning quarterback Steve Young and two-time Super Bowl champion Booger McFarland will be with Kolber, Moss and Schefter.

Highlights for Week 1 Sunday NFL Countdown Editions:

• Sunday: Seven reporters provide reports from stadiums: Dan Graziano (Seattle-Indianapolis), Sal Paolantonio (Pittsburgh-Buffalo), Ed Werder (Arizona-Tennessee), Kimberley Martin (Cleveland-Kansas City), Jeff Darlington (Green Bay-New Orleans), Mike Reiss (Miami-New England) and Lindsey Thiry (Chicago-LA Rams).
• Former Pro Bowl Quarterback Alex Smith makes his ESPN debut in a one-on-one interview with his former teammate, Patrick Mahomes. Smith will also join the Sunday NFL Countdown crew for a handful of segments.
• Schefter has the story of new Jets head coach Robert Salah, who makes his NFL head coaching debut 20 years after 9/11 – the day he made the decision to give up a career in the financial world to pursue his passion for football.
• Wright Thompson joins Sunday NFL Countdown to share his unique perspective on the relationship between Aaron Rodgers, the Packers and the city of Green Bay.
• Cowboys owner Jerry Jones welcomes back fans across the NFL with a tease on the traditions that will return to stadiums on Sunday.

Highlights for Week 1 Monday Night Countdown Editions:

• Schefter with all the breaking news and latest injury updates coming out of Sunday’s Week 1 action
• McFarland, Moss, and Young on the biggest storylines coming out of Week 1
• Previewing the final Week 1 game: Baltimore at Las Vegas on Monday Night Football

In addition to Monday Night Countdown, Monday Tailgate (7:30-8:30 p.m. ET) will be available on the ESPN App and ESPN’s Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter accounts. The digital show is hosted by Jason Fitz and Shae Peppler Cornette from Bristol.

Fantasy Football Now Adds to Sunday Morning Festivities
Leading into week 1 and then continuing each Sunday, Fantasy Football Now (10 a.m. – 1 p.m.) provides the landscape for fantasy football fans. Host and fantasy expert Field Yates, senior fantasy sports analyst Matthew Berry, senior writer and injury analyst Stephania Bell all return. Insider Schefter, NFL analyst Damien Woody and ESPN’s team of NFL reporters make weekly appearances. Writer and analyst Mike Clay will also contribute to the show each week.

In week 1, the award-winning pre-game show debuts Sept. 12 on ESPNEWS at 10 a.m. and will move to ESPN2 at approximately 10:50 a.m.

And There is More…
More details on ESPN’s complete multiplatform coverage of NFL Week 1 and the entire NFL season will be announced tomorrow.

Please note: Release was updated on Sept. 9

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Contact: Derek Volner ([email protected]