The final week of the regular season starts with a pair of games on Saturday, each with playoff implications. First up, the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers play with the NFC South title at stake. For the Panthers, it’s simple: A win secures the division. The Bucs, meanwhile, need a win plus a Falcons loss. Next up, the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers face off for the NFC West crown and No. 1 seed in the NFC.
On Sunday, some playoff positioning will be decided in the afternoon games before we get to Sunday Night Football that will complete the 14-team playoff field. The Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers play in the final regular season game of the 2025 NFL season, with the winner taking the AFC North title and the loser going home.
Both games on Saturday will be broadcast nationally on ABC and ESPN, and the Ravens-Steelers game on Sunday night will air nationally on NBC and stream on Peacock. Keep reading to see all of the week 18 matchups, the full TV schedule for the weekend and the best ways to watch or stream any game no matter where you live.
How to watch NFL Week 18 from anywhere using a VPN
If you find yourself less interested in the Sunday afternoon games on CBS and Fox that are being broadcast in your area or your access is blocked because of an internet location glitch or incorrectly applied blackout restrictions, you have another 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 Sunday’s games from anywhere.
With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. 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 needing to connect to a public Wi-Fi network, where you’ll want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
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.
Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.
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.
Plan out your weekend football viewing
Week 18 gets started with two nationally televised games on Saturday.
NFL Week 18 Saturday schedule
| Away Team | Home Team | Time (all times ET) | TV channel | Streaming service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Panthers | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4:30 p.m. | ABC/ESPN | ESPN Unlimited |
| Seattle Seahawks | San Francisco 49ers | 8 p.m. | ABC/ESPN | ESPN Unlimited |
The Sunday slate gets started with six games at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) followed by seven games in the late window on CBS and Fox, before we then get to the Sunday night game on NBC and Peacock. Check out the 506 Sports coverage map to see which Sunday games are being shown in your area.
NFL Week 18 Sunday schedule
| Away Team | Home Team | Time (all times ET) | TV channel | Streaming service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | Minnesota Vikings | 1 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Cleveland Browns | Cincinnati Bengals | 1 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Indianapolis Colts | Houston Texans | 1 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| New Orleans Saints | Atlanta Falcons | 1 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Dallas Cowboys | New York Giants | 1 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Tennessee Titans | Jacksonville Jaguars | 1 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| New York Jets | Buffalo Bills | 4:25 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Los Angeles Chargers | Denver Broncos | 4:25 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Kansas City Chiefs | Las Vegas Raiders | 4:25 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Washington Commanders | Philadelphia Eagles | 4:25 p.m. | CBS | Paramount Plus |
| Detroit Lions | Chicago Bears | 4:25 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Arizona Cardinals | Los Angeles Rams | 4:25 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Miami Dolphins | New England Patriots | 4:25 p.m. | Fox | Fox One |
| Baltimore Ravens | Pittsburgh Steelers | 8:20 p.m. | NBC | Peacock |
How to watch NFL Week 18 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, the Fox games with Fox One and the NBC games with Peacock. And you can stream both games on Saturday with ESPN’s direct-to-consumer streaming service.
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.
All the live TV streaming services above allow you to cancel anytime. They do 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 accessing the game after turning on your VPN and setting it to the correct viewing area, you can try two quick fixes. First, log in to your streaming service subscription account and ensure the address registered for the account is within 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 need to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (such as your phone) so that any device connected to its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
- All 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 installing a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to the email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router can also be helpful, as 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.
