Sunday Night Football as a weekly scheduled game started in 1987 when ESPN began broadcasting Sunday night NFL games. This marked the beginning of regular Sunday night NFL broadcasts. Later, in 2006, NBC took over the rights to Sunday Night Football from ESPN and made it the premier weekly NFL showcase that it is known for today. The first NBC Sunday Night Football regular season game aired on September 10, 2006, between the Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants. However, Sunday night NFL games were sporadically played as early as 1978, but not as a regular weekly fixture until 1987 with ESPN's broadcasts.
