CBS announced the Jan. 1 game between the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans will be broadcast live from Nashville. That’s the second earliest NFL game ever, behind the 1 p.m. game on Jan. 1, 1999, when the St. Louis Rams hosted the Buffalo Bills in the postseason.
The game, which kicks off at 1 p.m. (ET), will feature Justin Timberlake as a halftime entertainer (though he’s only filling in for the exiled Katy Perry).
It’s far from the only time the NFL has been forced to compromise on scheduling because of conflicts with things like pop concerts and college football bowl games. But this is just one week earlier than the previous-heaviest Monday night game, and under a (rather interesting) market-by-market system, Kansas City will have the second earliest primetime game in the country. The Eagles are hosting the Redskins on that day.
The national window that airs immediately before the primetime game will be paired with another pair of games that will include NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” and ESPN’s “Monday Night Football.”
A NFL spokesperson said via email: “As always we’re working through scheduling, but nothing to report at this time.”
