The Houston Texans have won their last two games to even their record at 5-5 and stay in the AFC playoff picture. To make it three straight, they’ll need to find a way to knock off the Buffalo Bills tonight without their starting quarterback. C.J. Stroud will miss his third straight game with a concussion, setting up Davis Mills for another start.
For the Bills, quarterback Josh Allen is coming off a game in which he threw for three touchdowns and rushed for another three, but Allen and the Bills offense face a stiff test tonight against a rugged Texans defense. The Bills are 7-3 and in prime position in the AFC playoff race but trail the New England Patriots in the AFC East. The Bills need a win tonight to keep their hopes alive for a sixth-consecutive division title.
The Bills-Texans game kicks off tonight at 8:15 p.m. ET (5:15 p.m. PT) and will stream nationally on Prime Video and free on Twitch. Fans in the Buffalo and Houston markets can watch on a local TV station but the rest of the country will need to stream it on Prime Video or Twitch.
How to watch Bills vs. Texans on TNF
Tonight’s game will stream nationally on Prime Video, giving NFL fans more incentive than free two-day shipping to sign up for an Amazon Prime account, which costs $15 a month or $139 a year. You can also subscribe only to Prime Video for $9 a month.
If you don’t pay for either of Amazon’s services, you can watch free on Prime Video’s Twitch channel. (Twitch is also owned by Amazon.)
You can also use NFL Plus, the league’s $7-per-month streaming service (or $15 a month with Red Zone included), to stream the game without subscribing to Prime or Prime Video. Note that NFL Plus viewing is limited to watching on just a phone or tablet, not on a computer or TV.
Can I watch the Bills-Texans game on local TV?
Yes, Bills and Texans fans in the local markets of each team will be able to watch the game on an over-the-air station. For this game, that’s ABC 7 (WKBW) in Buffalo and Fox 26 (KRIV) in Houston, according to 506 Sports.
There are two ways to watch local channels on your TV without cable or satellite TV. The first is with a live TV streaming service. The second is with an over-the-air antenna if you live in an area with good reception.
You can watch ABC or Fox with a live TV streaming service, but not every service carries every local network in every area, so check each one using the links below to make sure it carries ABC or Fox where you live.
How to watch NFL Week 12 from anywhere using a VPN
Looking ahead to the weekend, 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.
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 Rams and Bucs.
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.
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 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.