Week 16's NFL slate features a "Monday Night Football" showdown between two teams headed in vastly different directions. Brock Purdy and the streaking San Francisco 49ers hit the road to take on Jonathan Taylor and the reeling Indianapolis Colts.
San Francisco (10-4), which has won four straight games by 10-plus points, looks to stay planted in the NFC playoff picture with a victory against a Colts (8-6) squad that has lost four consecutive games since starting 8-2.
Indianapolis has turned to 44-year-old Philip Rivers to help right the ship. The eight-time Pro Bowler returned to the field last week following a five-year hiatus to become the fifth quarterback in NFL history to start a game at age 44 or older. Rivers joined a list that includes Tom Brady, Steve DeBerg, Warren Moon and Vinny Testaverde.
Here are key facts about the Week 16 "Monday Night Football" matchup:
What is the schedule?
*All times Eastern
Monday, Dec. 22
3 p.m.: "NFL Live" on ESPN2
6 p.m.: "Monday Night Countdown" on ESPN
8:15 p.m.: 49ers at Colts on ESPN, ABC, and Disney+
*This will be the first traditional NFL game broadcast available to stream on Disney+ for standalone subscribers.
How can fans watch?
Fans can catch all of the action in the ESPN App and in the NFL streaming hub.
MNF Playbook with Next Gen Stats
MNF Playbook kicks off in Week 16 and returns in Week 17, Week 18 (for one of ESPN's doubleheader games) and for ESPN's wild-card and divisional round playoff game. All five editions of MNF Playbook will be available for fans with a subscription to the ESPN Unlimited plan on the ESPN App with Week 16 and 17 also airing on ESPN2.
Designed for viewers who crave deeper insights, MNF Playbook with Next Gen Stats will deliver real-time data, advanced metrics and analytics-driven commentary, powered by the NFL's Next Gen Stats and Adrenaline's TruPlay AI for five of ESPN's final six games of the 2025-26 season. Fans will consume the game with a 22-man, all-field camera view, as MNF Playbook taps TruPlay AI's unprecedented live predictive engine that is capable of adjusting to personnel, formations and pre-snap movement in real time.
How can fans access more NFL content from ESPN?
Check out the ESPN NFL hub page for scores, stats, schedules and more.