=== Defending champs, Peyton-Eli highlight NFL kickoff weekend ===

Orlando, FL (My Sportsbook) - The National Football League announced its schedule for Kickoff Weekend and Thanksgiving Day on Monday with several intriguing contests, including a holiday tripleheader.

NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue announced the slate of games at the NFL annual meeting in Orlando, with the rest of the 2006 regular-season schedule to be finalized and announced in April.

Staying with a tradition that started in 2004, the defending Super Bowl champion will host the NFL Thursday night season opener. Terrible towels will be in full force as Pittsburgh squares off against Miami on September 7 at 8:30 p.m. (et). The contest could feature a pair of high-profile signal- callers in the Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger and Miami's Daunte Culpepper, who will be making his first regular-season start in a Dolphin uniform if healthy.

It will also mark the return of the NFL to NBC, which will carry the league's featured prime-time package.

Volatile wide receiver Terrell Owens and his Dallas Cowboys will head to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars as part of a national doubleheader on Sunday, September 10.

That Sunday's primetime game will not be short on historical significance and brotherly love, as the Indianapolis Colts visit the New York Giants. The contest will feature of matchup of brothers under center -- Indianapolis' Peyton Manning and his younger brother, Giants' signal-caller Eli. The contest will mark the first time in NFL history that brothers will start at quarterback against each other.

Monday, September 11 will feature the first regularly scheduled Monday Night Football doubleheader beginning at 7 p.m. (et). The Minnesota Vikings, with new head coach Brad Childress roaming the sideline and veteran quarterback Brad Johnson under center, will visit the Washington Redskins. The nightcap will pit a pair of AFC West rivals against each other, as the Oakland Raiders, led by new head coach Art Shell, will play host to the San Diego Chargers.

Both games will be broadcast by ESPN, which is the new home for Monday Night Football.

Sports fans will also have extra football to watch as they feast on turkey this Thanksgiving with a tripleheader that will begin at 12:30 p.m. (et) and conclude with the first-ever Thanksgiving night contest.

The Dolphins will head to the Motor City to battle Thanksgiving mainstay Detroit in the opener with the second game pitting the Dallas Cowboys against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The primetime game on the NFL Network will send the Denver Broncos to Arrowhead Stadium to face arch-rival Kansas City.

Tagliabue also gave his annual review to start the meeting and, with his impending retirement in July, thanked owners and others throughout the league.

"I want to thank all of today's owners plus everyone in the league, plus all former owners, for giving me the opportunity and responsibility to be part of the NFL. It's been a tremendous experience," said Tagliabue.

Tagliabue announced earlier this month his decision to retire just a few days after negotiating an extension of the collective bargaining agreement with the players' association.

"Now we enter a period of transition for the league," Tagliabue continued. "The critical elements of success are in place. This should enable us to accomplish twin goals. The first is to present great football to the fans in 2006, while maintaining the momentum we have created on all business fronts, both domestically and internationally. The second goal is to manage the search for a new commissioner in a well-organized, inclusive way that will strengthen the league and underscore that the NFL is indeed the world's preeminent sports organization."

This week's meetings could feature the start of a search for Tagliabue's replacement.