Why is Cardinals vs. Chargers 'Monday Night Football' game only on ESPN+? – USA TODAY

The “Monday Night Football” doubleheader returns to ESPN and its family of networks in Week 7. ABC and ESPN are again showing an NFL game on Monday night; however, there is a caveat.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Baltimore Ravens will face off in the early game, which will air on ABC, ESPN, ESPN Deportes, and ESPN2 (“ManningCast”).
The later kickoff between the Arizona Cardinals and Los Angeles Chargers will be featured exclusively on ESPN+, the first prime-time game exclusively streamed on the platform.
Here’s everything you need to know for the Cardinals vs. Chargers matchup.
The first kickoff on Monday night between the Ravens and Buccaneers will air on both ESPN and ABC, while the Cardinals and Chargers will stream exclusively on ESPN+.
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The Cardinals and Chargers matchup will not be aired on national television. The game will only be available for streaming on ESPN+. This game is the first-ever exclusive NFL game for ESPN’s streaming service.
You must be subscribed to ESPN+ to watch the Cardinals (2-4) and Chargers (3-2) “Monday Night Football” matchup. This is the only way to watch the game. ESPN+ is part of the Disney family of networks, but the traditional ESPN and ABC broadcasts are generally unavailable on ESPN+.
ESPN+ is one of four streaming platforms with exclusive rights to NFL game broadcasts in 2024. Previously, ESPN+ exclusively aired two games in London in 2022 and 2023, but the Cardinals and Chargers will be the first prime-time exclusive.
Recently, the NFL has granted exclusive broadcast rights to multiple streaming services. “Thursday Night Football” is only available on Amazon Prime Video. Peacock has also joined the fray of exclusive streaming rights for NFL games. Later this season, for the first time, Netflix has exclusive rights to two NFL games on Christmas.
This massive shift to streaming services has received scrutiny, but the shift makes sense, with media consumption habits favoring streaming services with the younger generation.
ESPN is staggering the start time of its “Monday Night Football” games. The games will overlap significantly, but they won’t start simultaneously.
Here are the kickoff times for each game:
The Cardinals (2-4) and Chargers (3-2) will square off in a battle between two sides eager to prove they are playoff contenders in 2024.
Los Angeles is off to a solid start under head coach Jim Harbaugh. Last week, the Chargers head coach suddenly left the field in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos. It was later learned that Harbaugh’s heart condition caused his brief exit.
Los Angeles is led on the field by 26-year-old signal caller Justin Herbert. The Chargers have allowed the sixth-fewest yards per game (289.2) while sporting a top-10 rushing offense and are running the ball at the third-highest rate in the league.
On the other side is a hungry Cardinals team desperate to return to the win column. Arizona enters “MNF” after an ugly 34-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers. The Cardinals offense scored 69 points in their first two games but has only scored 64 over their last four combined.
Star rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. suffered a concussion in Week 6 but is set to return to the lineup on Monday night. Arizona faces a tough task against the Chargers defense, which ranks second in EPA per play allowed and third in defensive DVOA before Week 7 kicked off.
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