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Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff Writer
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The NFL has made its first-ever flex on ESPN’s “Monday Night Football,” announcing Thursday that the Week 15 matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots is out in favor of the Philadelphia Eagles‘ road game against the Seattle Seahawks (8:15 p.m. ET).
The switch reflects how far the Patriots, once prime-time darlings but in the midst of a 2-9 season, have fallen. The Patriots-Chiefs game at Gillette Stadium at Foxborough, Massachusetts, will now be played Sunday, Dec. 17 at 1 p.m. ET (Fox).
In turn, the change highlights how the Jalen Hurts-led Eagles (10-1) have risen to NFL elite status when it comes to scheduling. The game will be the Eagles’ sixth in prime time and comes the week after they visit the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night.
For the Seahawks, it will be their third prime-time game in four weeks, and fourth of the season, featuring a showcase of two of the leading candidates for Defensive Rookie of the Year in Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter and Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon.
This is the first year that the league built in the possibility to flex games in and out of “Monday Night Football” any time between Week 12-17. The deadline for a decision on Monday games is 12 days before kickoff.
In addition, the NFL officially announced its tripleheader for Saturday, Dec. 16.
The Minnesota Vikings visit the Cincinnati Bengals (1 p.m. ET), the Pittsburgh Steelers visit the Indianapolis Colts (4:30 p.m. ET) and the Denver Broncos travel to face the Detroit Lions (8:15 p.m. ET). Each game will be broadcast by NFL Network.
ESPN’s Brady Henderson contributed to this report.