'NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL' KICKS OFF 2008 SEASON WITH HALL OF FAME GAME, COLTS VS. REDSKINS, SUNDAY AT 8 PM ET

NFL Season Begins and Ends on NBC; NBC To Broadcast First Super Bowl Since 1998

NEW YORK � July 31, 2008 � "NBC Sunday Night Football" will make its 2008 season debut with the Hall of Fame Game between the Indianapolis Colts and the Washington Redskins from Canton, Ohio, Sunday at 8 pm. ET. Al Michaels and John Madden will have the call from Canton with the NFL Network's Adam Schefter handling the reporting duties, filling in for Andrea Kremer who is in Beijing for NBC Universal's coverage of the 2008 Olympic Games.

NBC will open the regular season on Thursday, Sept. 4 with the Super Bowl champion New York Giants hosting their NFC East rival the Washington Redskins and end the season on Feb. 1 with Super Bowl XLIII from Tampa Bay, the network's first since 1998. The season's first Sunday Night Football game will be Sept. 7 when Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts host the Chicago Bears, the first game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

MICHAELS AND MADDEN: Michaels, the commentator called "TV's best play-by-play announcer" by the Associated Press, and Madden, the most honored NFL broadcaster of all time with 15 Emmy Awards, return for their third season together on "NBC Sunday Night Football" and their seventh season together calling games in primetime. Madden returns to Canton for his first time as a broadcaster since being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

HALFTIME FROM CANTON AND BEIJING: At halftime, Al Michaels will conduct a live cross-talk with "Football Night in America's" Cris Collinsworth, from Beijing, China where he will serve as a special correspondent for NBC's coverage of the 2008 Olympic Games.

COLTS VS. REDSKINS:

The Redskins are a career 4-0 in the Hall of Fame Game. This game marks the NFL head-coaching debut for Jim Zorn, the former Seattle Seahawks quarterback and from 2001-2007 its quarterbacks coach. Another well-known name will be making his Redskins debut � Jason Taylor, the 11-year Miami Dolphins defensive end who was acquired by Washington in a trade.

Its also a big weekend for the Redskins and their fans as two longtime Washington Redskins, Art Monk and Darrell Green will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The Super Bowl XLI champion Colts, looking for its sixth straight AFC South title are playing in its first Hall of Fame game since 1996 when they defeated the Saints 10-3.

2008 SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL SCHEDULE:

Pre Season
Sunday, Aug. 3 � Hall of Fame Game: Indianapolis vs. Washington in Canton, Ohio, 8 p.m.
Thursday, Aug. 28 � Jacksonville Jaguars at Washington Redskins, 7 p.m.*

Regular Season
("NBC Sunday Night Football" kickoff, 8:15 p.m. ET preceded by "Football Night in America," 7 p.m. ET)
Thursday, Sept. 4 � Washington Redskins at New York Giants**
Sunday, Sept. 7 � Chicago Bears at Indianapolis Colts
Sunday, Sept. 14 � Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns
Sunday, Sept. 21 � Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers
Sunday, Sept. 28 � Philadelphia Eagles at Chicago Bears
Sunday, Oct. 5 � Pittsburgh Steelers at Jacksonville Jaguars
Sunday, Oct. 12 � New England Patriots at San Diego Chargers
Sunday, Oct. 19 � Seattle Seahawks at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sunday, Oct. 26 � No game scheduled due to World Series Game 4 (FNIA airs 7-8 p.m.)
Sunday, Nov. 2 � New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts
Sunday, Nov. 9 � New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles
Sunday, Nov. 16 � Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins (Flex Week, Teams Subject to Change)
Sunday, Nov. 23 � Indianapolis Colts at San Diego Chargers (Flex Week, Teams Subject to Change)
Sunday, Nov. 30 � Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings (Flex Week, Teams Subject to Change)
Sunday, Dec. 7 � New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks (Flex Week, Teams Subject to Change)
Sunday, Dec. 14 � New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys (Flex Week, Teams Subject to Change)
Sunday, Dec. 21 � San Diego at Tampa Bay (Flex Week, Teams Subject to Change)
Sunday, Dec. 28 � (Flex Week, Teams TBA)

*7 p.m. ET start due to Democratic National Convention

**7 p.m. ET start due to Republican National Convention