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Sunday Night Football in Week 15 serves as a de-facto playoff elimination game, as the Dallas Cowboys and Oakland Raiders, two teams still with a very slight outside chance at sneaking into the playoffs, face off at the Oakland Coliseum.
Kickoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast nationally on NBC. If you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can watch NBC live online, on your tablet or on another streaming device via one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services. They cost a monthly fee but all come with a free trial, so you can watch tonight’s game for free if you’re in a select market:
DirecTV Now: NBC (live in 15 markets) is included in all four channel packages, ranging from $35 to $70 per month. It comes with a free 7-day trial, and you can watch on your computer via your browser, or on your tablet or streaming device via the DirecTV Now app
FuboTV: NBC (live in 11 markets) is included in the “Fubo Premier” channel package, which is $19.99 per month for the first two months and $39.99 per month after that. It comes with a free 7-day trial, and you can watch on your computer via your browser, or on your tablet or streaming device via the FuboTV app
Sling TV: NBC (live in 11 markets) is included in the “Sling Blue” channel package for $25 per month. It comes with a free 7-day trial, and you can watch on your computer via your browser, or on your tablet or streaming device via the Sling TV app
Preview
At this point, the odds of either of these teams making the playoffs are low–about four percent for Dallas and three percent for Oakland, according to FiveThirtyEight. Still, if the Cowboys win out, their odds jump to 44 percent, and if the Raiders win their last three, they’re up to 47 percent. So, still unlikely, but certainly not out of the question.
One thing is clear: It’s a must-win situation on Sunday night for a pair of teams that were both projected to be higher in the standings at this junction.
“I think the two of us probably expected to have a few more wins at this point in the year, but we are where we are and we’re looking forward to playing,” Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said on Wednesday.
The Cowboys, at this point, seem to have a better chance of once again resembling the team that most expected at the start of the year. After a three-game losing streak that coincided with the departure of Ezekiel Elliott on his six-game suspension–paired with some untimely injuries–they’ve now reeled off two straight wins by a combined score of 68-14, their defense has gotten a major boost by the return of linebacker Sean Lee, and Elliott will be back next week for a potential late-season run.
Oakland, meanwhile, appears to be moving in the opposite direction. After beating the Broncos and Giants–two teams that had just five combined wins at the time of each game–at home by just a touchdown each, they went into Kansas City last week and were dominated for three quarters before a late comeback attempt came up short.
“We are as frustrated and (angry) about what occurred (Sunday) as you can be, as anybody out there is,” Del Rio said. “Losing a game like that hurts and there are no words that I can say here today that are going to take away that pain or make those that care about the Raiders feel better, so I’m really not going to try.”
The Cowboys, who are 4-2 away from home this season, are favored by three points, while the over/under sits at 45.5 points.