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It's time to get "Back to Football!"
The 2011 season begins with the NFL's annual Thursday primetime kickoff game. The opener on September 8 on NBC (8:30 PM ET) will feature the past two Super Bowl winners when the defending-champion Green Bay Packers welcome the New Orleans Saints to Lambeau Field.
Last season, the Packers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25 in Super Bowl XLV to claim Green Bay's NFL-best 13th championship. The Saints capped the 2009 season by knocking off the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 in Super Bowl XLIV as New Orleans won its first Super Bowl title.
Continuing a tradition that started in 2004, the previous year's Super Bowl winner hosts the NFL Thursday night season kickoff contest the following September.
Prior to kickoff, fans will be able to witness an on-field celebration at Lambeau Field to honor the World Champion Packers as the NFL gets back to football. NBC begins its coverage of the moment along with a musical performance at 8:00 PM ET.
A rundown of NFL Thursday night season openers since 2002:
| Date | Site | Result (Home Team in CAPS) | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source: NFL | |||
| Sept. 5, 2002 | Giants Stadium | San Francisco 16, NY GIANTS 13 | San Francisco kicker Jose Cortez kicks a 36-yard field goal with six seconds remaining to lead the 49ers to victory in the NFL's first Thursday-night opener since 1949. |
| Sept. 4, 2003 | FedExField | WASHINGTON 16, NY Jets 13 | Washington kicker John Hall converts a gamewinning 50-yard field goal with five seconds remaining to lift the Redskins past his former team. |
| Sept. 9, 2004 | Gillette Stadium | NEW ENGLAND 27, Indianapolis 24 | New England quarterback Tom Brady passes for 335 yards and three touchdowns as the defending Super Bowl champions defeat the Colts. |
| Sept. 8, 2005 | Gillette Stadium | NEW ENGLAND 30, Oakland 20 | New England quarterback Tom Brady leads the offense by throwing for 306 yards and two touchdowns while running back Corey Dillon adds two scores for the defending Super Bowl champions. |
| Sept. 7, 2006 | Heinz Field | PITTSBURGH 28, Miami 17 | Pittsburgh quarterback Charlie Batch passes for three touchdowns and running back Willie Parker adds 115 yards as the defending Super Bowl champions defeat Miami. |
| Sept. 6, 2007 | RCA Dome | INDIANAPOLIS 41, New Orleans 10 | The Super Bowl champion Colts rack up 452 yards of offense as quarterback Peyton Manning passes for 288 yards and three TDs. |
| Sept. 4, 2008 | Giants Stadium | NY GIANTS 16, Washington 7 | Quarterback Eli Manning scores a touchdown and the Giants' defense allows just 209 total yards as the defending Super Bowl champions defeat division-rival Washington. |
| Sept. 10, 2009 | Heinz Field | PITTSBURGH 13, Tennessee 10 (OT) | Pittsburgh's Jeff Reed kicks a 33-yard gamewinning field goal in overtime as the defending Super Bowl champions defeat Tennessee. |
| Sept. 9, 2010 | Louisiana Superdome | NEW ORLEANS 14, Minnesota 9 | New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees throws for 237 yards and a touchdown to lead the Saints past the Vikings in a rematch of the 2009 NFC Championship Game |
NFL KICKOFF 2011 SCHEDULE
September 8, 11-12
(All times local)
New Orleans at Green Bay, 7:30 PM (Thurs., NBC)
Tennessee at Jacksonville, 1:00 PM
Detroit at Tampa Bay, 1:00 PM
Seattle at San Francisco, 1:15 PM
Atlanta at Chicago, 1:00 PM
Carolina at Arizona, 1:15 PM
Buffalo at Kansas City, 12:00 PM
Minnesota at San Diego, 1:15 PM
Indianapolis at Houston, 12:00 PM
NY Giants at Washington, 4:15 PM
Philadelphia at St. Louis, 12:00 PM
Pittsburgh at Baltimore, 1:00 PM
Cincinnati at Cleveland, 1:00 PM
Dallas at NY Jets, 8:20 PM (NBC)
New England at Miami, 7:00 PM (Mon., ESPN)
Oakland at Denver, 8:15 PM (Mon., ESPN)
KICKOFF WEEKEND
Since 1978 when the NFL went to the 16-game schedule, and excluding the abbreviated season of 1982, teams that are victorious on Kickoff Weekend are more than twice as likely to reach the playoffs than losers of an opening game:
Of the 474 teams which won openers: 251 went to the playoffs (147 won division titles).
Of the 474 teams which lost openers: 106 went to the playoffs (63 won division titles).
In 2010, eight of the 12 playoff teams -- Baltimore, Chicago, Green Bay, Kansas City, New England, New Orleans, Pittsburgh, and Seattle -- were victorious on Kickoff Weekend.
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