Drew Brees and the Saints are looking to get a win over their divisional rivals the Falcons on Thanksgiving.
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It was a busy Week 12 in the NFL with a thrilling mix of thrillers, blowouts and upsets (plus a smattering of the usual duds). The Seahawks held on to beat the Eagles, the Saints survived the Panthers and the Jets walloped Jon Gruden’s Raiders during the early games. After that the Patriots outlasted the Cowboys, the Titans ran all over the Jaguars and the 49ers exerted their dominance over the Packers. And on Monday the Ravens continued to show just how dangerous their offense, led by MVP candidate Lamar Jackson, can be as they blew out the Rams in LA. You can catch up on all the Week 12 action here.
With bye-weeks behind us and the playoffs quickly approaching, Thanksgiving football brings plenty to be thankful for. Three games are on the docket, starting with an NFC North clash between the Bears and the Lions at 12:30 p.m. ET (11:30 a.m. CT) on Fox. The action then heads to Dallas where the Bills take on the Cowboys at 4:30 p.m. ET (3:30 p.m. CT) on CBS in a pivotal game for both teams’ respective playoff chances, before closing out with Drew Brees and the Saints looking to get revenge on the Falcons for their Week 10 upset at 8:20 p.m. ET (7:20 p.m. CT) on NBC.
Unlike other Thursday Night Football games this season, none of the Thanksgiving games will be carried on NFL Network, Amazon Prime Video or Twitch. These three games are reserved for the big broadcast networks.
That doesn’t mean you need cable TV to watch along live, however. Whether enjoying the game with friends and family or looking to escape from them, here’s how cord cutters can catch all the Thanksgiving action — as well as the rest of the NFL games this season on Monday nights and Sundays.
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Live TV streaming services for cord cutters: How to choose…
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How can I watch my local team’s NFL games?
For teams in your local market — Lions fans in Detroit, Saints fans in New Orleans, and so on — you’ll be able to watch your local team’s games on a major local network channel.
Games are typically broadcast on CBS and Fox on Sunday afternoons. National broadcasts are shown on NBC on Sunday nights, ESPN on Monday nights and the NFL Network on Thursday nights and Sunday mornings. Most of the Thursday night games are simulcast on Fox, Amazon Prime and Twitch. (Note that CBS is the parent company of CNET.)
There’s also NFL RedZone to consider, a channel that springs to life each fall and shows live coverage from around the league with the promise to show you every touchdown from every Sunday afternoon game. It’s a great way to watch out-of-market action and essential viewing for fantasy football GMs.
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Which live TV streaming services are best for NFL fans?
The short answer? PlayStation Vue is our No. 1 overall pick for streaming live NFL football. It’s going dark in January 2020, but until then football fans can still subscribe and watch.
Read more: Best ways to watch football live without cable
The longer answer: Many live TV streaming services — including Vue as well as AT&T TV Now, FuboTV, Hulu with Live TV and YouTube TV — carry one or more local networks (namely CBS, Fox and NBC), so they’re the best bet for cord cutters who don’t want to use an over-the-air antenna.
The catch is that not every service carries every local network, so check each one using the links below to make sure it carries the network you want in your area. If you’re looking for the NFL Network you’ll want to focus on Sling TV Blue, PlayStation Vue or FuboTV.
Other stuff to know about live TV streaming services:
PlayStation Vue offers all the networks that show NFL games, and you can add the NFL RedZone channel for $10 a month extra. The $55 Core plan is the cheapest option that includes the five channels NFL fans need — CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN and NFL Network — and the $10-a-month Sports Pack will get you NFL RedZone. As we mentioned above, Vue is shutting down in January, but until then it’s still available.
Sling TV splits its live NFL options across its $25-a-month Blue plan and $25-a-month Orange plan, which forces NFL fans into a tricky decision or encourages them to spring for both at $40 a month.
Sling Blue includes Thursday and Sunday games on NBC, Fox and the NFL Network. Sling Orange includes Monday night games on ESPN. And if you want to add the NFL RedZone, you’ll need Sling Blue. Blue — but not Orange — subscribers can add the $10-a-month Sports Extra package, which includes NFL RedZone. Sling TV does not offer CBS, which typically carries AFC games on Sunday afternoons.
Sling’s packages are discounted by 40% for the first month.
Hulu with Live TV costs $45 a month and includes CBS, Fox, NBC and ESPN but not NFL Network or RedZone.
YouTube TV costs $50 a month and includes CBS, Fox, NBC and ESPN, but not NFL Network or RedZone.
FuboTV costs $55 a month and includes CBS, Fox, NBC and NFL Network but not ESPN. You’ll miss out on Monday Night Football on ESPN but will get the games on Sunday afternoons (CBS and Fox), Sunday nights (NBC) and Thursday nights (NFL Network). The $9-a-month Sports Plus package adds NFL RedZone.
CBS All Access costs $6 a month and lets you watch AFC matchups on Sunday afternoons. It makes for a good add-on for Sling TV subscribers, who don’t get CBS.
Prime Video will stream the Thursday Night Football games this season that will be simulcast on Fox. The games on Prime Video will also be streamed live on the Amazon-owned Twitch, which means you don’t need an Amazon Prime membership to stream Thursday night football.
Stream live on your phone with NFL Mobile and Yahoo app
In previous years, only Verizon Wireless subscribers could livestream games on their phones with the NFL Mobile app. Now, anyone can get a live NFL stream on a phone, regardless of carrier. You’ll be limited to watching on your phone and will see only local, in-market games and the national broadcasts on Thursday, Sunday and Monday nights.
National and local games will also be streamed on the Yahoo and Yahoo Sports app.
Originally published earlier this year. Regularly updated with the latest game details.