Of the teams playing on "Thursday Night Football" tonight, both enter Week 2 of the 2020 NFL season winless, but one might be a little more desperate than the other.
The Browns entered the season with reasonable expectations to compete in the AFC North and push for a playoff berth. But their clunker against the Ravens to open the season has them in danger of falling into the dreaded 0-2 hole. Their opponent Thursday night, the Bengals, aren't playing with the same amount of pressure despite having the same record.
MORE: Watch tonight's NFL game live with fuboTV
Cleveland's relative desperation is part of the reason the home team is a solid favorite Thursday night based on the odds. However, if rookie quarterback Joe Burrow can build on his solid debut for Cincinnati last week, the Bengals are more than capable of knocking off their division rivals on the road.
Below is more about the Week 2 "Thursday Night Football" matchup and how to watch it.
Who plays on Thursday night football tonight?
- Matchup: Cincinnati Bengals at Cleveland Browns
- Location: FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio
This is technically the first "Thursday Night Football" game of the 2020 season since last week's NFL season-opener was presented on NBC with the network's Sunday night crew. Starting with Browns vs. Bengals and for the next few weeks, NFL Network will be the exclusive home for Thursday night games.
Cleveland lost its season-opener in Baltimore last week in embarrassing fashion, but it gets a chance to redeem itself with another AFC North game. This is Cincinnati's first division game of the season; the Bengals lost a heartbreaker at home against the Chargers last week when kicker Randy Bullock missed what would have been a game-tying field goal as the clock expired.
What time is the NFL game tonight?
- Date: Thursday, Sept. 17
- Kickoff time: 8:20 p.m. ET
All Thursday night games throughout the 2020 NFL season will start at 8:20 p.m. ET, though the TV viewing options (more on those below) will change in a few weeks.
This is the first of two primetime games on the Browns' schedule, as Cleveland also will host Baltimore on a Monday night in Week 14.
Likewise, the Bengals also have a pair of primetime games on their schedule. In addition to Thursday night's game in Cleveland, Cincinnati will host Pittsburgh on a Monday night in Week 15.
What channel is "Thursday Night Football on tonight?
- TV channel: NFL Network
- Live stream: fuboTV | DAZN (in Canada)
For now, NFL Network is the exclusive TV home of "Thursday Night Football" and the only channel that will show Browns vs. Bengals. That will be the case for all Thursday night games through Week 4.
Beginning in Week 5, all "Thursday Night Football" games will broadcast live on cable network Fox in addition to NFL Network. That simulcast setup will be in place through Week 16.
NFL Network is available via most cable providers in the United States. It also is available via satellite provider DirecTV (channels 212 and 1212) and IPTV providers Verizon FiOS (channels 88 and 588) and Google Fiber (channel 2019).
NFL live stream for Thursday night game
Because Thursday night's game in Cleveland will be shown exclusively by NFL Network, the live stream options are limited. More will become available for "Thursday Night Football" in Week 5, when the games will start being simulcast on Fox.
Below are all of the live streaming options for "Thursday Night Football" in 2020.
| Streaming option | Cable subscription needed? | Free? | Cost | Free trial? |
| Fox Sports Go (Starting in Week 5) | Yes | Yes | - | - |
| Amazon Prime Video (Starting in Week 5) | No | No | $8.99/month | No |
| NFL App | No | Yes | - | - |
| Yahoo! Sports App | No | Yes | - | - |
| fuboTV | No | No | $60/month | Yes |
| AT&T TV Now (Not Weeks 2-4) | No | No | $55/month | Yes |
| Hulu Plus Live TV (Not Weeks 2-4) | No | No | $55/month | Yes |
| Sling TV | No | No | $30/month | Yes |
| YouTube TV | No | No | $65/month | Yes |
NFL Week 2 schedule
Browns vs. Bengals on Thursday night kicks off a complete week of 16 NFL games, with Saints vs. Raiders on Monday night bookending Week 2.
The game of the week is the Sunday night matchup between the Patriots and the Seahawks in Seattle, with other notable matchups being Falcons vs. Cowboys, Rams vs. Eagles and Ravens vs. Texans, to name a few.
Below is the complete schedule for Week 2 of the 2020 NFL season.
- Thursday, Sept. 17
| Game | Kickoff time | TV channel |
| Cincinnati Bengals at Cleveland Browns | 8:20 p.m. ET | NFLN |
- Sunday, Sept. 20
| Game | Kickoff time | TV channel |
| New York Giants at Chicago Bears | 1 p.m. ET | CBS |
| Atlanta Falcons at Dallas Cowboys | 1 p.m. ET | FOX |
| Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers | 1 p.m. ET | FOX |
| Minnesota Vikings at Indianapolis Colts | 1 p.m. ET | FOX |
| Buffalo Bills at Miami Dolphins | 1 p.m. ET | CBS |
| San Francisco 49ers at New York Jets | 1 p.m. ET | FOX |
| Los Angeles Rams at Philadelphia Eagles | 1 p.m. ET | FOX |
| Denver Broncos at Pittsburgh Steelers | 1 p.m. ET | CBS |
| Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 1 p.m. ET | FOX |
| Jacksonville Jaguars at Tennessee Titans | 1 p.m. ET | CBS |
| Washington Redskins at Arizona Cardinals | 4:05 p.m. ET | FOX |
| Baltimore Ravens at Houston Texans | 4:25 p.m. ET | CBS |
| Kansas City Chiefs at Los Angeles Chargers | 4:25 p.m. ET | CBS |
| New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks | 8:20 p.m. ET | NBC |
- Monday, Sept. 21
| Game | Kickoff time | TV channel |
| New Orleans Saints at Las Vegas Raiders | 8:15 p.m. ET | ESPN |