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STAMFORD, Conn. - Aug. 27, 2025 - Eight days from today - next Thursday, Sept. 4 - NBC Sports kicks off the milestone 20th season of Sunday Night Football and Football Night in America on NBC and Peacock.
Sunday Night Football celebrates season 20 showcasing high-profile matchups featuring the NFL's biggest stars and best rivalries from NFL Kickoff next week to sports' biggest spectacle - Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8, 2026, on NBC, Peacock, and Telemundo.
The Super Bowl-champion Philadelphia Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys in NFL Kickoff '25 next Thursday, Sept. 4, in a matchup with special significance to SNF on NBC. It's the 17th meeting between the NFC East rivals on NBC's Sunday Night Football package - marking the most-played matchup in the history of the NBC SNF package, which kicked off in 2006.
The 2006 NFL Kickoff game (Pittsburgh's 28-17 victory over Miami on Sept. 7, 2006) was the first of NBC Sports' 354 regular-season games played to date in the SNF package (does not include two Peacock-exclusive regular-season games). The package's first game on a Sunday night (Sept. 10, 2006) was "The Manning Bowl" as quarterback brothers Peyton Manning (Indianapolis) and Eli Manning (New York Giants) played against each other for the first time.
Along the way, Sunday Night Football has been primetime TV's No. 1 show for an unprecedented 14 consecutive seasons (2011-24) - a record unmatched in TV history (since 1950) - while Football Night in America has been the most-watched weekly studio show in sports each season since its 2006 debut.
In its first 19 seasons, NBC SNF games have been contested in 40 stadiums, with the Dallas Cowboys playing the most games in the series (61), Andy Reid coaching the most games (49), the Pittsburgh Steelers facing the most opponents (21 franchises), Aaron Rodgers throwing the most TD passes (87), and Tom Brady pulling off the most comebacks in the fourth quarter or overtime (eight).
Following is a look at NBC's SNF and FNIA as they head into their 20th seasons:
SNF ANNOUNCE TEAM
In the Sunday Night Football booth
Al Michaels & John Madden 2006-2008
Al Michaels & Cris Collinsworth 2009-2021
Mike Tirico & Cris Collinsworth 2022-present
On the sidelines for Sunday Night Football
Andrea Kremer 2006-2010
Michele Tafoya 2011-2021
Melissa Stark 2022-present
Rules Analyst for Sunday Night Football
Terry McAulay 2018-present
Sunday Night Football show open - performers
Pink 2006
Faith Hill 2007-12
Carrie Underwood 2013-present
FNIA FACTS & FIGURES
· The original Football Night in America team in 2006 consisted of Bob Costas, Cris Collinsworth, Tiki Barber, Jerome Bettis, Sterling Sharpe and Peter King.
· The current FNIA team consists of Maria Taylor, Jason Garrett, Devin McCourty, Chris Simms, Tony Dungy, Rodney Harrison, Mike Florio, Matthew Berry and Jac Collinsworth. Steve Kornacki, chief data analyst for NBC News and NBC Sports, joins FNIA late each season to break down the NFL playoff picture.
· Formerly rivals on the field, Tony Dungy and Rodney Harrison begin their 17th season together on FNIA in 2025.
· Tirico and Collinsworth were both members of the Football Night in America team before beginning in the SNF booth. Tirico hosted FNIA at the game site in the 2016-17 seasons before serving as studio host from 2018-21. Collinsworth worked in the FNIA studio in the 2006-2008 seasons.
· FNIA has had four homes - Studio 8G and Studio 8H at NBCUniversal headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, Studio 1 and currently Studio 3 at NBC Sports' International Broadcast Center in Stamford, Conn.
· Football Night in America has been the most-watched studio show in sports since its inception in 2006. Average viewership in 2024 was 7.1 million viewers (7:30-8:15 p.m. ET), up 9% vs. the inaugural season in 2006 (6.5 million).
· The most-watched single show (7:30-8:15 p.m. ET) in FNIA history was on Sept. 13, 2015, which averaged 12.3 million viewers leading into the Week 1 game between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys.
SNF STATS
MOST-HONORED LIVE PRODUCTION IN SPORTS
· In 19 seasons on NBC (2006-24), Sunday Night Football has been honored with the Sports Emmy for Outstanding Live Sports Series a record 11 times, including a record six consecutive accolades following the 2008-13 NFL seasons. In total, SNF has been awarded with 31 Sports Emmys, which does not include individual recognition for the announcers - as each member has won or earned a finalist nomination.
· The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) presented three NBC Sunday Night Football charter contributors with Lifetime Achievement Awards at the Sports Emmys - executive producer Dick Ebersol (after the 2008 NFL season), analyst John Madden (2009), and play-by-play voice Al Michaels (2010).
· SNF's original lead producer Fred Gaudelli and director Drew Esocoff were recognized in May 2024 by NATAS with Silver Circle honors for 25 years of "distinguished service within the television industry, setting standards for achievement, mentoring, leadership and professional accolades." SNF's current lead producer Rob Hyland was recognized with the same honor in May 2025.
· In August 2017, NBC Sunday Night Football was honored with a display in the Pro Football Hall of Fame for "its record run as the #1 show in all of primetime television."
· The Pro Football Hall of Fame recognized five charter members of the NBC SNF team with the Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award, which is presented annually "in recognition of longtime exceptional contributions to radio and television in professional football" - John Madden (2002 - prior to debut of SNF), Al Michaels (2013), Andrea Kremer (2018), Dick Ebersol (2019), and Fred Gaudelli (2023).
ON THE SCREEN
SNF is No. 1 in Primetime for Unprecedented 14 Consecutive Years
NBC's Sunday Night Football finished the 2024-25 television season as primetime's #1 TV show in all key metrics for an unprecedented 14th consecutive year - adding to its record for the most consecutive years atop the charts (since 1950), based on official live plus same day data provided by Nielsen. Sunday Night Football also ranked as the No. 1 show in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic for the 16th consecutive TV season.
In the most competitive time slot in media, NBC Sunday Night Football posted a Total Audience Delivery average of 21.6 million viewers in 2024 - the show's best viewership since 2015, according to official live plus same day data released by Nielsen, and digital data from Adobe Analytics.
Most Consecutive Years, #1 Ranked Show in Primetime, Since 1950
14 years in a row - Sunday Night Football (2011-12 through 2024-25)
6 years in a row - American Idol (2005-06 through 2010-11)
5 years in a row - The Cosby Show (1985-86 through 1989-90)... tied Cheers in '89-90
5 years in a row - All in the Family (1971-72 through 1975-76)
4 years in a row - Gunsmoke (1957-58 through 1960-61)
Led by Peacock, SNF Continues to Set Streaming Records
Led by Peacock, NBC Sports Digital hit another viewership milestone for Sunday Night Football in 2024, delivering a full-season Average Minute Audience above 2 million viewers (2.2 million) for the first time across Peacock, NBCSports.com, the NBC Sports app, and NFL Digital properties - up 38% from the prior record (1.6 million) set in 2023, and nearly double the AMA in 2022 (1.2 million).
The streaming audience has grown such that NBC Sports Digital's AMA of 2.2 million viewers for SNF topped the Fall primetime average (8:30-11:30 p.m. ET) of all linear cable networks over the 20 SNF nights this season (excludes Sat., Dec. 21 show, which was at 1 p.m. ET).
In addition:
· The Peacock Exclusive AFC Wild Card in Jan. 2024 (Miami Dolphins vs. Kansas City Chiefs) is the most-watched exclusive nationally streamed NFL playoff game, reaching more than 32 million viewers. Peacock has also streamed exclusive national coverage of two NFL regular-season games (one each in the 2023 and 2024 seasons).
· In Dec. 2024, Peacock exclusively streamed the EA SPORTS Madden NFL Cast of the Houston Texans-Kansas City Chiefs game, which featured a blend of video game elements and live action to present a first-of-its-kind live football experience.
Most Watched Games, NBC Sunday Night Football package, 2006-24 seasons
Game, Date Avg. Viewers*
Dallas at Washington, 12/30/12 30.3 million
Baltimore at Kansas City, 9/5/24 29.2 million
Minnesota at Detroit, 1/5/25 28.5 million
Tampa Bay at New England, 10/3/21 28.4 million
Chicago at Green Bay, 11/26/15 27.8 million
Dallas at N.Y. Giants, 1/1/12 27.7 million
Pittsburgh at Denver, 9/9/12 27.6 million
Pittsburgh at New England, 9/10/15 27.6 million
Detroit at Kansas City, 9/7/23 27.5 million
Minnesota at New Orleans, 9/9/10 27.5 million
*Viewership across NBC, Peacock, NBC Sports Digital, NFL Digital
ON THE FIELD
NBC has televised 354 regular-season primetime NFL games since NBC's Sunday Night Football debuted on September 7, 2006. Among the notable facts and figures from the NBC SNF package (includes NFL Kickoff and Thanksgiving primetime games):
Games in the NBC SNF package have been played in 40 different stadiums...
Stadiums Hosting Most Games in NBC SNF package:
Acrisure Stadium (Steelers) 23
AT&T Stadium (Cowboys) 23
Lambeau Field (Packers) 23
Empower Field at Mile High (Broncos) 18
Gillette Stadium (Patriots) 18
Lincoln Financial Field (Eagles) 18
New Stadiums Debuting on NBC's Sunday Night Football
Lucas Oil Stadium (Colts) 2008
AT&T Stadium (Cowboys) 2009
Levi's Stadium (49ers) 2014
U.S. Bank Stadium (Vikings) 2016
Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Falcons) 2017
SoFi Stadium (Rams, Chargers) 2020
Most NBC SNF Games, Since 2006, Team
Dallas Cowboys 61
Green Bay Packers 48
Pittsburgh Steelers 46
Philadelphia Eagles 42
New England Patriots 39
New York Giants 39
Most Played Matchups on NBC SNF, Since 2006
Cowboys-Eagles 16
Cowboys-Giants 13
Bears-Packers 11
Ravens-Steelers 10
Packers-Vikings 8
Teams Playing Most Opponents on NBC SNF, Since 2006
The Pittsburgh Steelers have played 21 different NFL clubs/franchises on NBC SNF, the most in the league. Following are the clubs to have played at least 15 different franchises on SNF:
Team SNF Opponents (Different Clubs)
Pittsburgh 21
New England 20
Green Bay 19
Indianapolis 18
Kansas City 18
Dallas 17
Denver 15
Philadelphia 15
Seattle 15
Best Win % on NBC SNF, Since 2006, Team
Buffalo Bills 9/3/2000 0.75
New Orleans Saints 17-6-0 0.739
Baltimore Ravens 15-10-0 0.6
Kansas City Chiefs 19-13-0 0.594
Arizona Cardinals 6/4/2001 0.591
Los Angeles Chargers 9/6/2000 0.6
Most SNF Games, Since 2006, Head Coach
Andy Reid 49
Mike McCarthy 45
Mike Tomlin 44
Bill Belichick 39
Jason Garrett 32
Most SNF Victories, Since 2006, Head Coach
Andy Reid 28
Mike Tomlin 26
Bill Belichick 22
Mike McCarthy 22
Sean Payton 17
Most SNF Games, Since 2006, Player
L.P. Ladouceur 49
Jason Witten 45
Mason Crosby 43
Aaron Rodgers 40
Tom Brady 38
Most TDs Scored on NBC Sunday Night Football
Antonio Brown 23
Tyreek Hill 21
Davante Adams 19
Rob Gronkowski 17
Jason Witten 16
Most TD passes on NBC Sunday Night Football
Aaron Rodgers 87
Tom Brady 73
Ben Roethlisberger 68
Peyton Manning 65
Drew Brees 55
Tony Romo 55
Most Passing Yards on NBC Sunday Night Football
Tom Brady 11,269
Aaron Rodgers 10,299
Ben Roethlisberger 10,026
Eli Manning 8,196
Peyton Manning 7,682
Highest Passer Rating on SNF, Since 2006 (min. 5 games)
Jordan Love 123.7
Drew Brees 114.9
Kirk Cousins 108.5
Aaron Rodgers 105.1
Peyton Manning 103.5
Russell Wilson 101.4
Tony Romo 97.7
Patrick Mahomes 96.8
Most Game-Winning Drives (4th Q or OT) on SNF, Since 2006
Tom Brady 8
Aaron Rodgers 7
Ben Roethlisberger 7
Tony Romo 6
Jared Goff 5
Patrick Mahomes 5
Eli Manning 5
Dak Prescott 5
Most Rushing Yards on NBC Sunday Night Football
Ezekiel Elliott 1,636
LeSean McCoy 1,610
Aaron Jones, Sr. 1,345
DeMarco Murray 1,143
Joseph Addai 1,064
Most Receiving Yards on NBC Sunday Night Football
Antonio Brown 2,433
Jason Witten 2,324
Travis Kelce 2,093
Davante Adams 1,715
Randall Cobb 1,650
-- NBC SPORTS -
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