TV Forces Steelers Into Pair of Weekday Afternoon Games

Get ready for some weekday afternoon football.

The Steelers’ Week 12 game against the Baltimore Ravens has been rescheduled to Wednesday, Dec. 2 and will kick off from Heinz Field at 3:40 p.m.

As a result of that postponement, the Steelers’ Week 13 game against the Washington Football Team has been moved from Sunday to Monday, Dec. 7 and that game will kick off at 5 p.m.

Both of the early afternoon weeknight times are a result of television commitments. NBC, which will broadcast the game against the Ravens on Wednesday, did not wish to preempt its coverage of the lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in New York, which is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m.

Another ultimate 2020 note: the Ravens-Steelers game is kicking off Wednesday at 3:40 pm because NBC wanted and was committed to broadcasting the 88th Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree lighting ceremony on Wednesday night, per sources. Tree lighting trumped football.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 30, 2020

A broadcast network has not been announced for the Steelers’ Week 13 game against Washington, but the 5 p.m. start time is necessary because ESPN holds an exclusive national broadcast window for their Monday Night Football franchise. The Buffalo Bills will play the San Francisco 49ers in that game.