ESPN's successful revitalization of its Monday Night Football product continued in 2024 as the network just announced this was the second-most watched year since they started airing it in 2006. An average of 15 million viewers checked out MNF this season, trailing only the 2023 campaign and up 12% from 2022's numbers.

The Lions vs 49ers produced the biggest audience to watch any Monday Night Football game in 2024. Over 22.2 million people tuned into the ESPN broadcast. It ranks as one of the top-five highest audiences for a Monday night game since 2006, when ESPN took over the long-running primetime football franchise.

Here's why the Monday Night Football game between the Detroit Lions and the San Francisco 49ers no longer matters to the playoff picture.