Who is playing on Thursday Night Football in Week 7?

Throughout the early portion of the 2024 NFL season, division play has been the order of the day for Thursday Night Football matchups. Week 6's game was another good example of this as San Francisco righted the ship with a big win in Seattle to avoid falling to 2-4, which would have been a bad omen for a Super Bowl contender.

The 49ers-Seahawks matchup marked the fifth consecutive Thursday night game to feature a matchup between division rivals. That streak will come to an end in Week 7 but there figures to be no shortage of drama in New Orleans thanks to a long-anticipated homecoming.

Which NFL teams will play on Thursday night in Week 7?

• Denver Broncos (3-3) vs. New Orleans Saints (2-4)
• Date: Oct. 17
• Time: 8:15 p.m. ET
• How To Watch: Amazon Prime
• Location: Superdome, New Orleans, LA

The Superdome will be the site for Thursday Night Football in Week 8 as the 2-4 New Orleans Saints play host to the 3-3 Denver Broncos. While the records of the teams involved may not be inspiring, this game was put in primetime for one reason and one reason only: the return of Sean Payton to New Orleans.

Payton, who is now coaching the Broncos, had a tremendous run as the Saints' head coach from 2006 through 2021, helping use the team as a symbol for the rebirth of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina and guiding the franchise to its first Super Bowl title during the 2009 season. The Saints reached unprecedented heights under Payton's leadership, winning the NFC South seven times as part of nine playoff appearances after making the postseason just five times in 35 years prior to his arrival.

Things haven't gone as smoothly for Payton in Denver yet but he is trying to develop his own young quarterback in Bo Nix, who has had his growing pains this season. The Broncos have managed to put themselves into the wild card hunt in the AFC thanks to an elite defense, so finding a way to stop a rookie quarterback in Spencer Rattler could give Payton a chance to leave town with a critical win for his team's postseason hopes.