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Beginning in the 1970 NFL season, the National Football League began scheduling a weekly regular season game on Monday night before a national television audience. From 1970 to 2005, the ABC television network carried these games, with the ESPN cable television network taking over beginning in September 2006. Listed below are games played from 1970 to 1989.

Stadiums and teams appearing under different names

Some stadiums and teams had multiple names throughout their appearances in the MNF package in this era.

First name listed is the stadium/team's name heading into 1990. All names were seen in the package at least once in this era.

Stadiums

• Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium – Atlanta Stadium
• Foxboro Stadium – Schaefer Stadium (the facility did not host a game while it was named Sullivan Stadium)
• Jack Murphy Stadium – San Diego Stadium

Teams

• Indianapolis Colts – Baltimore Colts
• Los Angeles Raiders -Oakland Raiders
• Phoenix Cardinals – St. Louis Cardinals - Arizona Cardinals

1970s

1970 NFL season

The first ever MNF game between the New York Jets and the Cleveland Browns ended with a 31–21 Browns win. Key highlights include Browns' 2 1st-quarter touchdowns by Gary Collins and Bo Scott; Emerson Boozer of the Jets scoring 2 rushing touchdowns, each scored in 2nd & 3rd quarters; Homer Jones became the first player in MNF history to score a touchdown on a kickoff/punt return when he sprinted 94 yards to the end zone to begin the 2nd half, and Billy Andrews also became the 1st defensive player in MNF history when he score a touchdown on an intercepted pass from Joe Namath in the final closing minutes to seal the win.

In only the second MNF game on September 28, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Len Dawson became the first quarterback to throw for 4 touchdown passes on Monday Night Football.

The October 19 game between the Washington Redskins and Oakland Raiders was originally scheduled as a head coaching matchup between Vince Lombardi of the Redskins and the Raiders' second-year mentor, John Madden. However, Lombardi died of colon cancer six weeks before the contest. In that game, Raiders running back Hewritt Dixon rushed for 164 yards and a touchdown. 13 years later, the Redskins and the Raiders (this time playing in Los Angeles) would meet in the Super Bowl, with the Raiders winning the game and the title 38–9.

The October 26 game between the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings was notable when for the 1st time in MNF history, a team (Rams) didn't score a touchdown in the entire game. The result was a 13–3 Vikings win. Also on that same day, the 1st fight between Muhammad Ali and Jerry Quarry ended on a 3rd-round technical knockout. This boxing match is significant because it marked the return of Ali to boxing since his suspension that would ultimately led to his confrontational match against Joe Frazier in the Fight of the Century. Howard Cosell (a noted boxing commentator himself) would provide updates on that fight. The Ali-Quarry fight would later be highlighted on ABC's Wide World of Sports.

Following their humiliating shutout in the November 16 game (which is also the 1st shutout in MNF history), the Cowboys would go on a seven-game winning streak, not losing until a deciding field goal in the final seconds of Super Bowl V against the Baltimore Colts. The St. Louis Cardinals, who completed a season sweep of the Cowboys at the Cotton Bowl would go 1–3–1 down the stretch to fall completely out of the playoffs and cost coach Charley Winner his job. As for the Cowboys, they would not be shutout for 15 years until the future Super Bowl champion Chicago Bears beat them 44–0.

The Colts and Packers simultaneously became the first teams to make their second appearances on MNF when they played each other. The Browns, Lions, and Rams were the only other teams to make two MNF appearances in 1970. The Browns became the first team in MNF history to win 2 games in 2 appearances, while the Rams became the first team to lose 2 games in 2 appearances. The only teams that did not appear on MNF in 1970 were the 49ers (who first appeared in 1971), the Saints and Patriots (who first appeared in 1972) and the Broncos and Bills (who first appeared in consecutive weeks in 1973).

The November 23 game became infamous when an intoxicated Howard Cosell slurred his way through the first half and vomited on Don Meredith's boots at halftime. Cosell left Franklin Field prior to the second half, leaving Meredith to finish the game with Keith Jackson.

1971 NFL season

The October 11 game was the final NFL contest played in the Cotton Bowl. The Dallas Cowboys moved into Texas Stadium for its next home game on October 24 versus the New England Patriots.

Wide receiver Dave Smith of the Pittsburgh Steelers became a part of Monday Night Football lore with an infamous mistake in the October 18 game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Smith was en route to scoring on a 50-yard pass play when he raised the ball over his head before reaching the end zone. Smith lost control of the ball, thinking he had already scored, with the mistake resulting in a touchback for the Chiefs.

The November 1 game between the visiting Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers ended in a 14–14 tie at County Stadium in Milwaukee. The first tie in the history of the Monday Night Football series.

The December 13 game saw the triumphant return of George Allen to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where he coached the Los Angeles Rams for five seasons (1966–70). Allen's new team, the Washington Redskins, clinched its first playoff berth since 1945 with a 38–24 victory over the Rams, also handing the NFC West championship to the San Francisco 49ers. Ironically, the 49ers ousted the Redskins from the playoffs with a 24–20 victory 13 days later. In addition, one of the contestants for an NFL punt, pass and kick contest shown during the game would be future Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.

The October 25 game featured a moment of silence for Lions wide receiver Chuck Hughes who died of a heart attack on the field at Tiger Stadium the previous day.

The 49ers made their MNF debut December 6 vs. Kansas City at home.

1972 NFL season

The September 25 game marked the New Orleans Saints' debut on Monday Night Football. The Saints' opponents, the Kansas City Chiefs, returned to Tulane Stadium for the first time since their Super Bowl IV victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Chiefs coach Hank Stram later coached the Saints in 1976 and 1977, although the team moved to the Louisiana Superdome in 1975. Saints quarterback Archie Manning made his Monday Night debut as well; 23 years later, his son, Eli Manning, made his Monday Night debut for the New York Giants against the Saints in a game relocated from New Orleans to Giants Stadium after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina three weeks prior.

The Patriots were the other team to make its MNF debut in 1972, hosting the Colts November 6.

The October 9 game between the Oakland Raiders and Houston Oilers at the Astrodome is infamous for an awkward off-field incident. During the game, which the Raiders won in a 34–0 shutout, ABC cameras had panned out and showed several fans leaving. A cameraman caught one of the few to stay in the game, who showed his disgust with the Oilers' performance by raising his middle finger, prompting Don Meredith to quip, "We're number 1 in the nation." The game was the first in the series' three-year history to pit two former AFL clubs against each other. After this game, the Oilers went the rest of the season winless, ending with a 1–13 record and again with a 1–13 record in the next season.

The November 27 game saw the Miami Dolphins make their lone primetime appearance during their 17–0 season. The Dolphins had little trouble in dispatching the outclassed St. Louis Cardinals, one of nine games the Dolphins won that season against teams which won five or fewer games (the Cardinals finished 4–9–1 for the third time in four seasons, and did so again in 1973).

The December 11 game saw the New York Jets wide receiver Don Maynard set a new NFL record for pass receptions when he caught his 632nd reception, a record that stood until 1975 when Charley Taylor became the NFL all-time pass receptions record holder.