Monday Night Football:  Matt Ryan and the Falcons Host Peyton Manning and the Broncos

Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons will host Peyton Manning and the defending AFC West champion Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football on September 17, at 8:30 p.m. ET. Play-by-play voice Mike Tirico and analyst Jon Gruden will call the matchup with sideline reporter Lisa Salters.

The Broncos hold the NFL’s longest current streak of 21 consecutive seasons appearing on MNF and both teams are coming off impressive wins in their season-opening games. Manning, making just his second start for Denver after missing the entire 2011 season, is 11-3 all-time on MNF.

The two-hour Monday Night Countdown pre-game show will begin at 6:30 p.m. with host Chris Berman and analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson and NFL Insiders Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter. Host Stuart Scott and analysts Trent Dilfer and Steve Young will join Salters from the Georgia Dome.

MNF is available at WatchESPN.com (on computers) and via the WatchESPN app (on tablets) for fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider. MNF will also be televised on ESPN Deportes.

Charlie Daniels in Monday Night Football Open

Country music legend Charlie Daniels and The Charlie Daniels Band will star in ESPN’s Monday Night Football open this week when Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos visit Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 17, at 8:30 p.m.  The MNF open will feature Daniels’ 1979 hit song ‘The Devil Went Down to Georgia’, with new lyrics highlighting the star quarterbacks in Monday night’s matchup.  

Mike Tirico’s Monday Night Preview Podcast

The new weekly podcast previewing the upcoming Monday Night Football matchup with Mike Tirico will feature interviews with Tirico’s MNF booth partner and Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, and MNF rules consultant Gerry Austin, a 16-year veteran NFL referee who has worked three Super Bowls as a game official.  Posted on Fridays, the Mike Tirico MNF Preview podcast takes fans behind the scenes with the MNF crew, key players and insiders involved in the upcoming matchup.

Sunday NFL Countdown: RG3 – The Leader Within; Jaworski on Flacco and Vick; Giants Finish Line; and More

On Sunday, Sept. 16, beginning at 10 a.m., Chris Berman and analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson (on main set), as well as Suzy Kolber, Merril Hoge and Ron Jaworski (on an adjoining set) will preview NFL week two games on Sunday NFL Countdown Presented by IBM.  ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter and senior analyst Chris Mortensen will provide the day’s headlines and league news.

Correspondents Bob Holtzman (Tampa Bay at New York Giants), Ed Werder (New Orleans at Carolina), Sal Paolantonio (Baltimore at Philadelphia), Josina Anderson (New York Jets at Pittsburgh) and Colleen Dominguez (Detroit at San Francisco) will report from five games.  Highlights:

• RG3:  Rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III had a spectacular debut, completing 19 of 26 passes for 320 yards with a passer rating of 139.9 and led the Redskins to a 40-32 victory over the New Orleans Saints.  Though a rookie, RG3 has increasingly become a team leader – posting quotes in the locker room. His veteran teammates talk about the rookie and the impact his quotes have had on the team in such a short time. Greg Garber reports.
• Jaws with Flacco and Vick:  In the offseason, Ron Jaworski shared separate game film review sessions with quarterbacks Joe Flacco (Ravens) and Michael Vick (Eagles).  On Countdown, the former NFL quarterback and one of the best minds in the sport dissects the game film.
• Giants Finish Line: Reporter Rachel Nichols recounts how head coach Tom Coughlin’s inspirational speech and the video he shared with the New York Giants the night before Super Bowl XLVII propelled the team to its second Super Bowl victory in five years.
• Pittsburgh’s Kirby Wilson:  Two days before the Steelers-Broncos 2011 playoff game, Steelers running backs coach Kirby Wilson’s house caught fire. Wilson suffered second- and third-degree burns. Though his road to recovery has been long and arduous, Wilson has returned to the Steelers sidelines, an inspiration to his family, team and community, reports Josina Anderson.
• Where You At?:  Cris Carter and Tom Jackson identify and spotlight underperforming players in this new Sunday NFL Countdown segment.

Monday Night Countdown: Peyton Manning on “Gruden Extra;” Mike Smith and Matt Ryan in “Soundtracks;” and More

Prior to MNF, ESPN’s pregame show – two-hour Monday Night Countdown Served by Applebee’s – will preview the Broncos at Falcons game at 6:30 p.m. Chris Berman will host with analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson on the main set from ESPN’s Bristol studio.  NFL Insiders Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter will report league news and updates.  Stuart Scott, Steve Young and Trent Dilfer will be on-site from Atlanta.  MNF sideline reporter Lisa Salters will report from the Georgia Dome.  Highlights:

• In “Gruden Extra,” MNF’s Jon Gruden sits down with quarterback Peyton Manning ahead of his second start for the Denver Broncos to review Manning’s first game, a home win vs. the Steelers, his comeback to pro football after missing the 2011 season, and life in his new town.
• Ron Jaworski’s film room segment will focus on Manning.
• Rick Reilly features the Mayor of Denver, Michael Hancock, whose deep connection to the Broncos dates back to the team’s run to Super Bowl XXI when the then-17-year-old Hancock served as the team’s mascot.
• “Soundtracks” features in-game audio of Falcons head coach Mike Smith and quarterback Matt Ryan, who since coming to the Falcons in 2008, have combined to lead the team through a period of sustained success.

Snickers NFL Matchup – Peyton Manning in “Jaws Playbook;” Matt Ryan’s No-Huddle Offense; Joe Flacco – Learning Manning’s Play Book; and More

NFL Matchup with host Sal Paolantonio and analysts Ron Jaworski and Merril Hoge will preview week two action on Sunday, Sept. 16, on ESPN at 3:30 a.m. (ESPN2 at 8:30 a.m.), taking viewers inside the film room with X’s and O’s analysis of the weekend’s key matchups.  Highlights:

• Jaws Playbook – Peyton Manning: Jaworski dissects Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning’s first game back in pro football (vs. Steelers) last Sunday, after a neck injury which reportedly required four surgeries forcing the former Indianapolis Colt to sit out the season.
• Hoge Breakdown: Hoge explains how quarterback Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons will build on their dominant performance in Kansas City last Sunday by using the no-huddle offense to gain an edge at home vs. Manning and the Broncos.
• Between the Lines:  In this new segment, Jaworski and Hoge combine to point out key plays in a blitz by the San Francisco 49ers Carlos Rogers that set the tempo early last Sunday in Green Bay and made quarterback Aaron Rodgers uncomfortable in the pocket.
• The Film Room:  With new quarterback coach Jim Caldwell, the Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is taking a page out of Peyton Manning’s book, contends Hoge as he goes inside the film room to show how the no-huddle offense has made the Ravens signal caller more proficient.
• Beyond the Film Room:  Jaworski explains how Robert Griffin III’s understanding of a coverage by the Saints defense led to an 88-yard touchdown to Pierre Garcon in the Redskins second possession of the game.
• Money Down – Mark Sanchez:  After quieting his critics in week one vs. the Buffalo Bills, Hoge puts his “Money Down” on New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez and evaluates a long third down throw in the game that highlights Sanchez’s development as a quarterback.
• Factor Back:  In this week’s “Factor Back” segment, Jaworski shows an uncanny toss sweep by the New England Patriots to running back Stevan Ridley.

NFL Opening Weekend Lifts ESPN Digital Media to Its Most Trafficked Day Ever on Sunday

The kickoff of the NFL season lifted ESPN across digital platforms – including ESPN.com, the ESPN mobile Web, ScoreCenter and Fantasy Football apps – to its most trafficked day ever on Sunday with an average minute audience of 904,000.  Specifically, across Sunday and Monday:

• ESPN.com NFL section – averaged 4.7 million unique visitors, up four percent compared to the same two days last season.  Additionally, its average minute audience of 43,000 was up 35 percent from last year.
• ESPN.com Fantasy Football section – averaged 3.9 million unique visitors (up four percent) with an average minute audience of 89,000 (up 54 percent).
• ESPN mobile Web NFL section – reached 3.7 million unique visitors, up 26 percent.  It also logged an average minute audience of 48,000, up 95 percent.

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