The NFL season starts Thursday night, and you may be one of many fans scrambling to figure out how to watch your favorite team.
There are plenty of ways to stream NFL games, and it may not even be necessary to subscribe to NFL Network or NFL RedZone. However, signing up for a number streaming services can quickly become costly.
Fortunately there are several credit cards with benefits that can help cover the costs of subscription services to watch NFL games, along with other ways to earn rewards and cash back.
4 ways to score NFL games using your credit cards
1. Use the digital entertainment credit through the Amex Platinum for Peacock
The Platinum Card® from American Express offers a yearly $240 digital entertainment credit that can be used towards paying for Peacock, NBC's streaming service (enrollment required). This is broken up to $20 statement credit per month.
Peacock offers Sunday Night Football games and tonight's kickoff game.
Peacock has three different plans, with the introductory plan being free. The other two plans are either $4.99 or $9.99 per month. This means you'll still have credit that can be used towards other eligible services, which include Disney+, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, and The Wall Street Journal.
You must enroll in the offer prior to purchase. You can do this in your American Express customer portal.
The card has a steep $695 annual fee, but comes with a long list of benefits, including airline fee credits, Uber credits, automatic hotel elite status, airport lounge access, TSA PreCheck/Global Entry credits and more (see rates and fees). Terms apply.
The Platinum Card® from American Express
Rewards
Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year, 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel, 1X points on all other eligible purchases
Welcome bonus
Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum Card®, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu.
Annual fee
$695
Intro APR
None
Regular APR
See Pay Over Time APR
Balance transfer fee
N/A
Foreign transaction fee
None
Credit Needed
Excellent/Good
See rates and fees, terms apply.
2. Stream Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime Video using the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express or Prime Visa
The majority of U.S. households have an Amazon Prime subscription, and not only can you get two day shipping with that membership, you can also watch 11 Thursday Night Football games this season at no extra cost.
These games of the 2021-2022 season will be streamed on Amazon Prime:
- Week 5: Rams vs. Seahawks
- Week 6: Bucs vs. Eagles
- Week 7: Broncos vs. Browns
- Week 8: Packers vs. Cardinals
- Week 9: Jets vs. Colts
- Week 10: Ravens vs. Dolphins
- Week 11: Patriots vs. Falcons
- Week 13: Cowboys vs. Saints
- Week 14: Steelers vs. Vikings
- Week 15: Chiefs vs. Chargers
- Week 16: Browns vs. Packers
If you have a Prime membership but don't currently have an Amazon credit card, consider the Prime Visa. It earns 5% cash back on purchases made at Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh, and Whole Foods Market, 5% back on Chase Travel purchases, unlimited 2% back at gas stations, restaurants, and on local transit and commuting (including rideshare) and 1% back on other purchases. The card does not have an annual fee but you will need to be an Amazon Prime member to get approved.
3. Cash back or travel rewards on streaming services
As streaming services have grown in popularity, several credit cards have added streaming services as a category to earn either bonus travel rewards or cash back. Below are several cards that don't offer specific streaming benefits but do help you earn more rewards from your streaming expenses.
Note, be sure to check what your credit card issuer will consider as a "streaming service". You can do this by checking the terms and conditions of the card, or by calling their customer service line.
U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card
The U.S. Bank Cash card offers up to 5% cash back on the first $2,000 spent each quarter on select categories. Streaming services is one of the categories, along with 11 other popular categories such as gym/fitness centers and furniture stores.
The card also comes with a welcome offer where you can earn $200 after spending $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 120 days of account opening. The card has no annual fee.
Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card
The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards card offers unlimited cash back on not only streaming services, but other popular categories. You will earn unlimited 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®).
After signing up for the card, you can earn a one-time $200 cash bonus once you spend $500 within the first 3 months from account opening. The card has no annual fee. (see rates and fees)
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Known as one of the best rewards credit cards available, the Chase Sapphire Preferred gives cardholders 3X points for every dollar spent on streaming services. The points, Chase Ultimate Rewards®, can be redeemed for travel through Chase Travel℠ or by transferring them to hotel or airline partners.
The welcome offer is currently 60,000 points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months of card membership. 60,000 points are worth $750 towards travel through Chase Travel℠. The card has a $95 annual fee.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Rewards
Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases, and $50 annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit, plus more.
Welcome bonus
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.
Annual fee
$95
Intro APR
None
Regular APR
21.49% - 28.49% variable on purchases and balance transfers
Balance transfer fee
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Foreign transaction fee
None
Credit needed
Excellent/Good
Terms apply.
Read our Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card review.
4. Streaming services that show NFL games
There are several streaming services to choose from if you're looking to watch NFL games. Some offer NFL RedZone, which has coverage for every single game.
Here are the services that stream games, as well as their prices:
Hulu: Hulu has several packages, ranging from $5.99 to $70.99 per month. However, if you want to add NFL RedZone, it's an additional $9.99 per month.
Peacock: Peacock is a modestly priced streaming service, and includes a plan that doesn't cost anything. The two paid packages are $4.99 and $9.99 per month, and you will be able to stream NFL games aired on NBC. The cheaper package will have ads on nearly all content, while the more expensive package will have limited ads and the ability to watch programing offline.
Amazon Prime Video: Free with Amazon Prime membership.
FuboTV: FuboTV ranges from $64.99 to $79.99 per month. You can watch select NFL games with the packages provided. However, to add NFL RedZone, it is an additional $10.99 per month.
Sling: Sling has two main packages: Orange and Blue. Both cost $35 per month, but right now, are on deep discount at $10 per month for the first month. If you want to add NFL RedZone, you will need to subscribe to Sling Blue and add the Sports Extra package, which is an extra $11 per month.
Bottom line
Credit cards are now offering more benefits than ever to consumers. From travel perks to discounts on streaming, there are more and more reasons to have at least one credit card in your wallet. Using the right credit card can net you great rewards along with discounts to stream your favorite NFL team this season.
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Information about the Prime Visa has been collected independently by Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of the card prior to publication. If you purchase something through Select links for the Prime Visa, we may earn a commission.
For rates and fees of the Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, click here.
