It is believed that the Pittsburgh Steelers will host the first game of the season this year on September 7th, 2006. The past few years, the NFL has scheduled the Super Bowl Champions to play in the first regular season game of the year. If the Steelers do play in the first game, they may will probably face a team that made the playoffs this season.

The NFL is also considering an ESPN doubleheader on Monday, September 11th, 2006. One game would begin at 6 P.M. EST, and the other would start at 9 P.M. EST. The sechedule for the 2006-2007 NFL season will be released in April. Some of the earlier prime time games will be announced a little sooner.

NBC will carry the first game of the season involving Pittsburgh. The game will likely be announced by John Madden and Al Michaels, who have announced the Thursday Night Openers for the past five seasons on ABC.