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Who plays on Monday Night Football? Breaking down Week 5 matchup

jacob camenker, usa today
·3 min read

ESPN and its family of networks have aired "Monday Night Football" doubleheaders the last two weeks, but that will come to an end in Week 5.

NFL fans will be treated to just one matchup to close the first weekend in October. The good news for those wanting multiple viewing options is that ESPN's "ManningCast" will be back, so if the game goes the way of some of the NFL's recent prime-time blowouts, that could help add some entertainment value.

With Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce set to be in action on Monday night, it's hard to imagine that the Week 5 "Monday Night Football" game won't live up to the hype.

Here's everything to know about the "MNF" matchup in Week 5.

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Who plays on Monday Night Football tonight?

The Chiefs (4-0) are hosting the Saints (2-2) in a matchup of teams navigating some injury issues on offense.

Kansas City's injury problem is better known, as they lost No. 1 wide-out Rashee Rice to a potentially season-ending knee injury. The Chiefs were already without veteran receiver Hollywood Brown due to a sternoclavicular injury, so they will now have to rely on first-round rookie Xavier Worthy and players like JuJu Smith-Schuster and Justin Watson to carry their receiver room.

The Chiefs are also without top running back Isiah Pacheco, so a lot will fall on Mahomes and Kelce as the two most proven pieces of Kansas City's skill position players.

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New Orleans' key offensive injury has flown a bit more under the radar. Center Erik McCoy suffered a groin injury early in the team's Week 3 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, and the team's offensive performance declined without him. They went from averaging 45.5 points and 405.5 yards in their first two games of the season to 18 points and 292.5 yards over their next two contests.

Of course, McCoy's absence wasn't the sole reason for that decline, but it certainly played a big part.

With that in mind, the Chiefs and Saints may engage in a defensive struggle on "Monday Night Football." It will be on Mahomes and Derek Carr to lead their undermanned offenses to victory, with some believing that Andy Reid's Chiefs have the better chance of coming out on top.

The Chiefs have not started 5-0 since the 2018 NFL season, which was Mahomes' first as a starter. A win over the Saints would continue the team's march toward a potential No. 1 seed in the AFC, giving them an easier chance to pull off an unprecedented Super Bowl three-peat.

What time is the NFL game tonight?

  • Start time: 8:15 p.m. ET

"Monday Night Football" will begin at 8:15 p.m. ET, the customary start time for the program throughout the 2024 NFL season. There is no "MNF" doubleheader in Week 5, so there will be no game with a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff as there was in Weeks 3 and 4.

What channel is Monday Night Football on tonight?

  • Cable TV: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes

  • Streaming: Fubo

"Monday Night Football" will air on ESPN in Week 5. There will not be another game airing on ABC, nor will a simulcast of ESPN's game air on the network.

That said, ESPN's "ManningCast" will return in Week 5. Eli and Peyton Manning will break down the game from the comfort of their home on ESPN2, so viewers can watch it on that network if they so desire.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who plays on Monday Night Football? Game, start time for Week 5