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Thursday Night Football: How to Watch Cowboys vs. Lions Today for Free

When to watch the Dallas Cowboys vs. Detroit Lions

Where to watch

Tonight’s game could go a long way to determining the NFC’s playoff picture at the end of the year. The 7-5 Lions and 6-5-1 Cowboys are both on the outside looking in with five weeks remaining in the regular season. With a 9-4 record, the 49ers currently hold the 7th and final playoff spot in the conference. Entering tonight, the Lions hold the 8th spot, and the Cowboys find themselves 9th in the NFC. Detroit has home field advantage tonight, but the Cowboys have momentum, having won their last three games.

The Cowboys-Lions 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 Dallas and Detroit 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 Cowboys vs. Lions 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 Cowboys-Lions game on local TV?

Yes, Cowboys and Lions 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 Fox 4 (KDFW) in Dallas and Fox 2 (WJBK) in Detroit, 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 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 Fox where you live.

How to watch NFL Week 14 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 14 NFL TV Sunday schedule

This Sunday, there are eight games starting at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT ) on CBS and Fox, followed by three games in the late window before we get to the Sunday night game on NBC and Peacock.

NFL Week 14 Sunday schedule

Away Team Home Team Time (all times ET) TV channel Streaming service
Miami Dolphins New York Jets 1 p.m. CBS Paramount Plus
New Orleans Saints Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1 p.m. CBS Paramount Plus
Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars 1 p.m. CBS Paramount Plus
Pittsburgh Steelers Baltimore Ravens 1 p.m. CBS Paramount Plus
Seattle Seahawks Atlanta Falcons 1 p.m. Fox Fox One
Cincinnati Bengals Buffalo Bills 1 p.m. Fox Fox One
Tennessee Titans Cleveland Browns 1 p.m. Fox Fox One
Washington Commanders Minnesota Vikings 1 p.m. Fox Fox One
Denver Broncos Las Vegas Raiders 4:05 p.m. CBS Paramount Plus
Chicago Bears Green Bay Packers 4:25 p.m. Fox Fox One
Los Angeles Rams Arizona Cardinals 4:25 p.m. Fox Fox One
Houston Texans Kansas City Chiefs 8:20 p.m. NBC Peacock

How to watch NFL Week 14 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.

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

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