You will need an appreciation for defense, and perhaps an affinity for special teams, to enjoy tonight’s Thursday Night Football game between the 2-10 New England Patriots and 7-5 Pittsburgh Steelers. Points will be at a premium: Both teams boast strong defenses and are missing key offensive starters. The Steelers lost starting quarterback Kenny Pickett to a high-ankle sprain last week and will turn to backup Mitch Trubisky. Patriots starting running back Rhamondre Stevenson also suffered a high-ankle sprain last week. Without Stevenson, the Patriots’ rushing attack will feature Ezekiel Elliott.
Kickoff for the Pats-Steelers Thursday Night Football matchup is set for 8:15 p.m. ET (5:15 p.m. PT) tonight with the game streaming nationally on Amazon Prime Video and for free on Twitch.
Keep reading to see your options for watching Thursday Night Football on Prime Video, Twitch, NFL Plus and — if you live in the Patriots’ or Steelers’ home markets — a local network channel.
T.J. Watt and the Pittsburgh Steelers host the New England Patriots tonight on Thursday Night Football.
With YouTube and YouTube TV now the exclusive home of NFL Sunday Ticket, along with games streaming on Paramount Plus, Peacock and ESPN Plus, there’s lots for NFL fans to keep track of this season. Check out our picks for the best live TV streaming services for NFL fans in 2023.
TNF streaming: Prime Video, Twitch and NFL Plus
Thursday Night Football games are streamed nationally on Amazon 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.
Fans in the local market of each team will be able to watch on an over-the-air station, while those who don’t pay for either of Amazon’s services can watch for free on Prime Video’s Twitch channel. (Twitch is owned by Amazon.)
If you subscribe to NFL Plus, the league’s $7-per-month streaming service (or $15 a month with Red Zone included), you can also stream the game without subscribing to Prime or Prime Video. Note that NFL Plus is limited to viewing on a phone or tablet, not on a computer or TV.
Thursday Night Football games are streamed live on Amazon Prime Video. For millions of Amazon Prime subscribers, the Prime Video channel is already included at no extra cost. But if you’re not an Amazon Prime subscriber, it might be worth it to shell out the $9 a month for the stand-alone Prime Video service, not only for football but also its impressive selection of shows and movies.
Read our Amazon Prime Video review.
Can I watch Thursday Night Football on local TV?
Yes, but only if you live in the local market of either of the teams playing on Thursday. This week, WFXT Fox 25 in Boston and WPXI NBC 11 in Pittsburgh will be showing the game. There are two ways to watch local channels on your 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 that has good reception.
You can watch local networks with a live TV streaming service, but not every service carries every local network, so check each one using the links below to make sure it carries the channel you need for the game in your area.
Hulu Plus Live TV costs $77 and includes Fox and NBC in most markets. On its live news page, you can enter your ZIP code under the “Can I watch local news in my area?” question at the bottom of the page to see which local channels you get. Read our Hulu Plus Live TV review.
Sling TV’s Sling Blue package includes local Fox and NBC stations, but only in a handful of markets. Sling Blue costs $45 a month in markets where it offers local networks and $40 elsewhere. Read our Sling TV review.
All the live TV streaming services above offer free trials, allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming services guide.