Seen on Screen (NFL Edition): The 2020 Schedules of NBC, CBS, ESPN, Fox, Amazon Prime, NFL Network

Seen on Screen provides a roundup of the current sports programming landscape as networks deal with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. In this week’s edition, major networks like NBC Sports, Fox Sports, and ESPN are combating the silence of no live sports with previously-released, taped, or archival content. Many networks have also continued producing live studio content – often with on-air talent located remotely.

NBC Sports
NBC Sunday Night Football will broadcast 19 games during the 2020 regular season, as well as three postseason and two preseason games.

In their first game on Thursday, Sept. 10, the network will be live from Arrowhead Stadium as Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes and the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs raise their Super Bowl banner before hosting Deshaun Watson and the Houston Texans in NFL Kickoff 2020 at 8:20 p.m. ET.

In the season opener of Sunday Night Football on Sunday, Sept. 13, NFL fans will get their first look at the new and spectacular SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, as Jared Goff and the Rams host Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys. SoFi Stadium marks the fifth NFL stadium opening on NBC SNF since 2009.

The Watson-Mahomes matchup in the opener is the first of an NBC SNF schedule packed with star-studded quarterback matchups, headlined by two-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers visiting NFL all-time passing leader Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 27, and Brees and the Saints visiting four-time Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady and his new Tampa Bay Buccaneers teammates on Nov. 8.

In addition to kicking off the 2020 NFL season, NBC will also televise three playoff games over the Wild Card and Divisional weekends – the most for the network since the debut of NBC’s SNF package in 2006.

On the weekend of January 9-10, NBC will broadcast a pair of Wild Card Playoff games, including the NFL’s first-ever primetime Sunday Wild Card playoff game, which was added in March, when the NFL announced an expanded 14-team playoff field. The Jan. 10 Wild Card playoff will also be presented on NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, Peacock, and in Spanish on Telemundo. NBC culminates its season with the broadcast of a Divisional Playoff game on the weekend of January 16-17.

Here is their full regular-season schedule:

• NFL Kickoff 2020: Houston Texans at Kansas City Chiefs (Sept. 10)
• Week 1: Dallas Cowboys at Los Angeles Rams (Sept. 13)
• Week 2: New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks (Sept. 20)
• Week 3: Green Bay Packers at New Orleans Saints (Sept. 27)
• Week 4: Philadelphia Eagles at San Francisco 49ers (Oct. 4)
• Week 5: Minnesota Vikings at Seattle Seahawks (Oct. 11)
• Week 6: Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers (Oct. 18)
• Week 7: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Las Vegas Raiders (Oct. 25)
• Week 8: Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles (Nov. 1)
• Week 9: New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Nov. 8)
• Week 10: Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots (Nov. 15)
• Week 11: Kansas City Chiefs at Las Vegas Raiders (Nov. 22)
• Week 12: Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers (Nov. 26) – Thanksgiving
• Week 12: Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers (Nov. 29)
• Week 13: Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs (Dec. 6)
• Week 14: Pittsburgh Steelers at Buffalo Bills (Dec. 13)
• Week 15: San Francisco 49ers at Dallas Cowboys (Dec. 20)
• Week 16: Tennessee Titans at Green Bay Packers (Dec. 27)
• Week 17: TBD (Jan. 3)

CBS Sports
CBS Sports’ 2020 NFL on CBS schedule is highlighted by its exclusive coverage of Super Bowl LV from Tampa, FL on February 7, 2021, marking the 21st time the CBS Television Network has broadcast the Super Bowl – the most of any network.

The CBS schedule boasts the NFL’s brightest young star quarterbacks from the AFC including Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes, Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson, Houston’s Deshaun Watson, Cleveland’s Baker Mayfield, Buffalo’s Josh Allen and the New York Jets’ Sam Darnold, as well as rookies Joe Burrow in Cincinnati, Tua Tagovailoa in Miami and the Los Angeles Chargers’ Justin Herbert who were all Top 6 draft picks. CBS’ Super Bowl campaign begins on Sunday, Sept. 13.

Highlighting the schedule beginning on Sept. 13 is a match-up of Mahomes’ Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 12 (Nov. 29), as well as Pittsburgh vs. Dallas in Week 9 (Nov. 8), New England vs. Kansas City in Week 4 (Oct. 4), Kansas City vs. New Orleans in Week 15 (Dec. 20), Kansas City vs. L.A. Chargers in the Chargers’ home opener in their new stadium in Week 2 (Sept. 20), and Baltimore vs. Houston in Week 2 (Sept. 20).

Marquee NFC cross-flex match-ups anchored by games in the 4:25 PM, ET national window are highlighted by New York Giants vs. Dallas in Week 5 (Oct. 11), Philadelphia vs. Green Bay in Week 13 (Dec. 6) and San Francisco vs. New England in Week 7 (Oct. 25), plus the L.A. Rams vs. Seattle at 4:05 PM, ET in Week 16 (Dec. 27).

The annual Thanksgiving Day broadcast featuring Houston vs. Detroit in Week 12 (Nov. 26) also highlights the NFL on CBS schedule; as well as compelling early window 1:00 PM, ET games: New York Giants vs. Chicago in Week 2 (Sept. 20), Baltimore vs. Philadelphia in Week 6 (Oct. 18) and Pittsburgh vs. Baltimore in Week 7 (Oct. 25).

Click HERE for the regular-season schedule

ESPN
The 51st season of Monday Night Football will kick off on ESPN with a doubleheader Monday, Sept. 14 – Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New York Giants (7:15 p.m. ET) and Tennessee Titans vs. Denver Broncos (10:10 p.m. / 8:10 p.m. MT). ESPN’s 17-game prime time schedule in 2020 will feature 11 of 12 playoff teams from 2019, including both the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and NFC champion San Francisco 49ers.

Beginning in week 2, MNF games will start at 8 p.m. ET (kick off at 8:15 p.m.). Suzy Kolber will host the Monday Night Countdown pregame show throughout the season (6 p.m.), as well as halftime and post-game SportsCenter coverage, from the MNF stadium.

All MNF games will be streamed live on all devices via the ESPN App.

ESPN Deportes, ESPN’s 24-hour Spanish-language domestic sports network, will again offer a Spanish language production of MNF games in 2020.

Here is their full regular-season schedule:

• Week 1: Pittsburgh Steelers at New York Giants, Tennessee Titans at Denver Broncos (Sept. 14)
• Week 2: New Orleans Saints at Las Vegas Raiders (Sept. 21) – simulcast on ABC
• Week 3: Kansas City Chiefs at Baltimore Ravens (Sept. 28)
• Week 4: Atlanta Falcons at Green Bay Packers (Oct. 5)
• Week 5: Los Angeles Chargers at New Orleans Saints (Oct. 12)
• Week 6: Arizona Cardinals at Dallas Cowboys (Oct. 19)
• Week 7: Chicago Bears at Los Angeles Rams (Oct. 26)
• Week 8: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New York Giants (Nov. 2)
• Week 9: New England Patriots at New York Jets (Nov. 9)
• Week 10: Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears (Nov. 16)
• Week 11: Los Angeles Rams at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Nov. 23)
• Week 12: Seattle Seahawks at Philadelphia Eagles (Nov. 30)
• Week 13: Buffalo Bills at San Francisco 49ers (Dec. 7)
• Week 14: Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns (Dec. 14)
• Week 15: Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals (Dec. 21)
• Week 16: Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots (Dec. 28)

Fox Sports
America’s Game of the Week will kick off Fox Sports’ slate with a Week 1 showdown between two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks, as Tom Brady leads the Tampa Bay Buccaneers into New Orleans to face Drew Brees and the Saints Sunday, Sept. 13, at 4:25 PM ET on Fox.

Fox Sports’ 2020 Sunday schedule includes at least 98 regular-season games, highlighted by nine editions of America’s Game of the Week. Overall, Fox televises more NFL football than any other network with a minimum of 109 regular-season matchups, including 10 appearances each by the Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers and defending NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers, as well as 11 from the New Orleans Saints and nine from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Additional top matchups featured during America’s Game of the Week include:

• Dallas Cowboys at Seattle Seahawks (Week 3)
• San Francisco 49ers at New Orleans Saints (Week 10)
• Dallas Cowboys at Minnesota Vikings (Week 11)
• Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys (Week 16)

Thursday Night Football on Fox begins Week 5 as Brady’s Buccaneers head north to Chicago to take on the Bears on Thursday, Oct. 8, at 8:20 PM ET on Fox, Fox Deportes, NFL Network, and Amazon Prime Video. The season begins Week 2 with exclusive NFL Network games.

Top Thursday Night Football on FOX games also include:

• Kansas City Chiefs at Buffalo Bills (Week 6)
• New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles (Week 7)
• Green Bay Packers at San Francisco 49ers (Week 9)
• Dallas Cowboys at Baltimore Ravens (Week 13)
• Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints (Christmas Day – Week 16)

The NFL on Fox continues its Thanksgiving Day tradition with a classic NFC East showdown between the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys at 4:30 PM ET on Thursday, Nov. 26.

Fox Sports’ postseason coverage features one NFC Wild Card Game on Saturday or Sunday, Jan. 9 or 10; two NFC Divisional Playoffs games on Saturday or Sunday, Jan. 16 or 17; and the NFC Championship Game on Sunday, Jan. 24.

Click HERE for the regular-season schedule.

Amazon Prime Video/NFL Network
In conjunction with Fox Sports, the NFL Network will handle its yearly Thursday Night Football schedule on linear television while Amazon Prime Video returns for the digital streaming side.

The full Thursday Night Football schedule includes:

• Week 2: Bengals at Browns
• Week 3: Dolphins at Jaguars
• Week 4: Broncos at Jets
• Week 5: Buccaneers at Bears
• Week 6: Chiefs at Bills
• Week 7: Giants at Eagles
• Week 8: Falcons at Panthers
• Week 9: Giants at 49ers
• Week 10: Colts at Titans
• Week 11: Cardinals at Seahawks
• Week 13: Cowboys at Ravens
• Week 14: Patriots at Rams
• Week 15: Chargers at Ravens