Most of the country will get Colts vs. Chiefs on CBS and the Vikings vs. Packers on Fox as the 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT ) games today. For the late games, nearly everyone will get Eagles vs. Cowboys at 4:25 p.m. ET (1:25 p.m. PT ) on Fox, according to the coverage map on 506 Sports.
If you find yourself less interested in the games that are being broadcast in your area or your access is blocked because of an internet location glitch, there’s an option to watch another game that doesn’t require subscribing to something like NFL Sunday Ticket or NFL Plus, or searching the internet for a sketchy website: You can use a virtual private network. With a VPN, you can watch any of today’s games from anywhere.
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday in a battle of AFC playoff hopefuls.
How to watch NFL Week 12 from anywhere using a VPN
If you find yourself unable to view Sunday’s games locally because of incorrectly applied blackout restrictions, you may need a different way to watch. That’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, plus it’s a great idea for when you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. So if your internet provider or mobile carrier has stuck you with an IP address that incorrectly shows your location in a blackout zone, a VPN can correct that problem by giving you an IP address in your correct, nonblackout area. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
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Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks. Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.
Price $13 per month, $75 for the first year or $98 total for the first two years (one- and two-year plans renew at $100 per year)Latest Tests No DNS leaks detected, 18% speed loss in 2025 testsNetwork 3,000 plus servers in 105 countriesJurisdiction British Virgin Islands
ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. Prices start at $3.49 a month on a two-year plan for the service’s Basic tier.
Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Week 12 NFL TV schedule
This Sunday, there are seven games starting at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT ) on CBS and Fox, followed by four games in the late window before we get to the Sunday night game on NBC and Peacock between the Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Four teams are on a bye this week: Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins, LA Chargers and Washington Commanders
NFL Week 12 Sunday schedule
| Away Team | Home Team | Time (all times ET) | TV channel | Streaming service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis Colts | Kansas City Chiefs | 1 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| New York Jets | Baltimore Ravens | 1 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | Chicago Bears | 1 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| New England Patriots | Cincinnati Bengals | 1 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| New York Giants | Detroit Lions | 1 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Minnesota Vikings | Green Bay Packers | 1 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Seattle Seahawks | Tennessee Titans | 1 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Cleveland Browns | Las Vegas Raiders | 4:05 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | Arizona Cardinals | 4:05 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Philadelphia Eagles | Dallas Cowboys | 4:25 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Atlanta Falcons | New Orleans Saints | 4:25 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Los Angeles Rams | 8:20 p.m. | NBC | Peacock |
How to watch NFL Week 12 in the US
If you don’t want to subscribe to a live TV streaming service, you can watch the CBS games with Paramount Plus and Fox games with Fox One on Sunday afternoon. Then on Sunday night, you’ll need Peacock for the Sunday Night Football game.
Football fans can stream CBS’ Sunday afternoon football schedule each week of the season on Paramount Plus with its $8 per month Essentials tier. You can check for yourself if your area has live CBS streaming here.
Read our Paramount Plus review.
Fox’s new direct-to-consumer streaming service costs $20 a month or $200 a year and lets NFL fans watch their local Sunday afternoon games on Fox. You’ll also get access to Fox’s complete TV portfolio, including sports-related channels such as Fox Sports, B1G, FS1, FS2 and local Fox stations.
With Peacock’s $11-per-month Premium plan, you can watch tonight’s game and every Sunday Night Football game this season. Read our Peacock review.
Best live TV streaming services for NFL fans
While subscribing to Paramount Plus, Fox One and Peacock is cheaper than a live TV streaming service, the advantage of the latter is the ability to flip quickly between CBS and Fox on Sunday afternoon when two games are on at the same time. Shutting down one streaming service and firing up another is much slower and more annoying, to the point that it’s not worth flipping to the other game during a commercial break of the one you’re watching.
The good news for football fans is that CBS and Fox are available on most live TV streaming services along with NBC, ABC, ESPN and NFL Network for SNF, MNF and the NFL’s international games.
DirecTV’s MySports plan costs $70 a month and includes ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and NFL Network, which are the main channels you need to watch NFL games on Thursday, Sunday and Monday each week of the season. You can’t get the RedZone add-on with the MySports plan but will need to subscribe to the full $85-a-month package and then add RedZone for an extra $15 a month.
You can use DirecTV’s channel lookup tool to see which local channels are available where you live. Read our DirecTV review.
YouTube TV carries all of the channels needed to watch the NFL and costs $83 a month, and you can add RedZone for an extra $11 per month. ABC and ESPN are back in its channel lineup after YouTube TV and Disney ended their contact dispute.
YouTube TV is also the exclusive home to NFL Sunday Ticket. But note that Sunday Ticket doesn’t include local games. You can only watch Sunday afternoon games that aren’t being broadcast on CBS or Fox in your area. If you want to watch all the football on Sundays you’ll need Sunday Ticket plus a YouTube TV subscription (or just get Sunday Ticket and then use an antenna for local games).
Plug in your ZIP code on YouTube TV’s welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area.
Fubo’s main package costs $85 per month and includes ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and NFL Network. You can also add RedZone for an extra $11 per month.
Fubo has a new skinny bundle that includes most of the channels you need for the NFL. This new Fubo Sports plan costs $56 per month ($46 for the first month) and includes all of the above channels except NBC for Sunday Night Football. It also includes access to ESPN’s new streaming app. It’s worth noting that the bundle is only available in certain regions at the moment, with a gradual rollout across the country.
Click here to see which local channels you get in your region with Fubo. Read our Fubo review.
All the live TV streaming services above allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming services guide.
Quick tips for streaming the NFL with a VPN
- With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — experience and success may vary.
- If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
- If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
- All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help, since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
- And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.
