Some sports fans may groan at the notion of watching preseason football, but NFL fanatics absolutely love it. It's easy to understand why.
The preseason is the first chance that many get to see their team's young players on the field as they battle for spots on the 53-man roster and practice squad. Some teams will also offer a glimpse at some of their new, veteran acquisitions, which is sure to thrill NFL fans everywhere.
Yes, plenty of teams — like Sean McVay's Rams — are moving away from playing any of their starters in the preseason. Even still, those games can tell fans and fantasy owners a lot about roster depth, so plenty will even want to catch those teams in action.
For the second consecutive preseason, there are 49 games set to be played, as the process was shortened from four weeks to three ahead of the 2021 season. Here's a look at how you can watch and live stream all 49 of those contests as you prepare for the 2022 NFL regular season.
MORE: Watch select NFL preseason games with fuboTV (free trial)
How to live stream NFL preseason games
There are usually only a few ways to stream NFL regular season games because of the massive packages that CBS, Fox, NBC and Amazon Prime pay to get exclusive rights to games. In the preseason, it becomes a bit easier for NFL fans to find streaming options.
There are only a handful of nationally televised contests during the preseason. Those networks will carry the exclusive streams of those contests, but the other 40-plus games will be available on a couple of centralized streaming platforms.
Below is a breakdown of the variety of ways that fans can catch preseason action in 2022:
National broadcasts
Yes, even preseason games do get a little bit of national attention. It's not necessarily because they are going to pull in massive audiences; it's more about each network getting their top broadcast team for 2022 up to speed and back into the groove of calling games.
This year, five of the 49 preseason contests will be broadcast on national networks and one will be carried on Amazon Prime. ESPN will carry two of the games while Fox, NBC and CBS will each carry just one.
ESPN will live stream games on the ESPN app and its website; NBC's stream can be accessed via the NBC Sports app, Peacock or its website; CBS will live stream games on the CBS Sports app and on its website. All providers will require users to sign in with TV provider credentials.
Meanwhile, NFL Network will broadcast 22 preseason games in 2022, all of which will be able to stream on a regional basis in the NFL app or via the NFL's official website. NFL Network will also carry replays of all 49 preseason games that will air periodically throughout the month of August and early weeks of September.
NFL+
The NFL used to offer all of its preseason games on NFL Game Pass, a year-long subscription service that broadcast all live, out-of-market preseason contests. Now, that duty will fall on NFL+ in the U.S.
NFL+ is a new streaming service that the NFL is launching to effectively replace Game Pass. It will offer access to all live, out-of-market preseason games, live, locally broadcast regular and postseason contests and both full and condensed-game replays.
NFL+ will cost just $39.99 yearly compared to the $99.99 price of Game Pass. It also comes with a seven-day free trial. So, if you're looking for a cheap, easy way to get access to NFL preseason games, NFL+ will be a good choice for you.
fuboTV
Every preseason game broadcast nationally or on NFL Network will also be available to stream on fuboTV, which comes with a free trial. That accounts for 27 of the 49 preseason games in 2022.
Much like NFL+, fuboTV offers access to original NFL Network programming. That includes shows like "Total Access," "NFL GameDay" and "Good Morning Football" in addition to programming from other networks.
NFL preseason schedule: Week 1
Note: Nationally televised games are listed in bold.
Thursday, Aug. 4 (Hall of Fame Game)
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Jaguars vs. Raiders (Canton, Ohio) | 8 p.m. | NBC, fuboTV |
Thursday, Aug. 11
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Giants at Patriots | 7 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Titans at Ravens | 7:30 p.m. | TBD |
Friday, Aug. 12
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Falcons at Lions | 6 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Browns at Jaguars | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Cardinals at Bengals | 7:30 p.m. | TBD |
| Jets at Eagles | 7:30 p.m. | TBD |
| Packers at 49ers | 8:30 p.m. | NFL Network |
Saturday, Aug. 13
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Panthers at Commanders | 1 p.m. | TBD |
| Chiefs at Bears | 1 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Colts at Bills | 4 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Seahawks at Steelers | 7 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Dolphins at Buccaneers | 7:30 p.m. | TBD |
| Saints at Texans | 8 p.m. | TBD |
| Cowboys at Broncos | 9 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Rams at Chargers | 10 p.m. | TBD |
Sunday, Aug. 14
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Vikings at Raiders | 4:25 p.m. | NFL Network |
Channels to be announced at a later time
NFL preseason schedule: Week 2
Thursday, Aug. 18
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Bears at Seahawks | 8 p.m. | ESPN, fuboTV |
Friday, Aug. 19
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Panthers at Patriots | 7 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Saints at Packers | 8 p.m. | TBD |
| Texans at Rams | 10 p.m. | NFL Network |
Saturday, Aug. 20
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Broncos at Bills | 1 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Lions at Colts | 1 p.m. | TBD |
| Commanders at Chiefs | 4 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Steelers at Jaguars | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Raiders at Dolphins | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| 49ers at Vikings | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Buccaneers at Titans | 7 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Cowboys at Chargers | 10 p.m. | NFL Network |
Sunday, Aug. 21
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Eagles at Browns | 1 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Bengals at Giants | 7 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Ravens at Cardinals | 8 p.m. | Fox, fuboTV |
Monday, Aug. 22
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Falcons at Jets | 8 p.m. | ESPN, fuboTV |
Channels to be announced at a later time
NFL preseason schedule: Week 3
Thursday, Aug. 25
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Packers at Chiefs | 8 p.m. | NFL Network |
| 49ers at Texans | 8 p.m. | Amazon Prime |
Friday, Aug. 26
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Bills at Panthers | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Seahawks at Cowboys | 8 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Chargers at Saints | 8 p.m. | TBD |
| Patriots at Raiders | 8:15 p.m. | TBD |
Saturday, Aug. 27
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Jaguars at Falcons | 3 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Rams at Bengals | 6 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Bears at Browns | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Commanders at Ravens | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Eagles at Dolphins | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Cardinals at Titans | 7 p.m. | TBD |
| Buccaneers at Colts | 7:30 p.m. | TBD |
| Vikings at Broncos | 9 p.m. | NFL Network |
Sunday, Aug. 28
| Game | Time (ET) | TV |
|---|---|---|
| Giants at Jets | 1 p.m. | NFL Network |
| Lions at Steelers | 4:30 p.m. | CBS |
Channels to be announced at a later time
