How to watch the NFL without cable—and spend as little as possible
- DirecTV’s $45 per month MyNews plan includes local ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox channels, plus cable news channels.
- YouTube TV’s $55 per month Entertainment plan includes local ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox channels, plus a mix of entertainment channels. You can add cable news channels for $8 per month more. See my coverage of YouTube TV’s genre plans for details.
Despite the lack of sports branding, either option would entitle you to Sunday afternoon games on CBS and Fox, Sunday Night Football on NBC, and any Monday Night Football games ESPN simulcasts on ABC.
Option 3: Antenna with streaming supplements
For those who live close enough to local broadcast stations, an over-the-air antenna is still the best way to watch in-market NFL games for free. With an antenna, you’ll get Sunday afternoon games on CBS and Fox, Sunday Night Football on NBC, and any Monday Night Football games that ESPN simulcasts on ABC.
An antenna will not get you ESPN’s Monday Night Football games, Amazon Prime’s Thursday Night Football games, or Netflix’s exclusives, with one exception: If your local team is playing in any of those games, one of your broadcast stations will carry them.
For the games that otherwise air on cable channels or streaming services, you’ve got a few options:
