NFL on Roku: How to Watch

September 21, 2015 - 19:48 -- RokuGuide
NFL on Roku: How to Watch

It's week 2 3 of the 2015 NFL regular season, and the new NFL channel that had been promised to be here by the first kickoff still hasn't arrived on Roku. Don't despair - there may be a way for you to catch at least some of the football action through your Roku. Here are some suggestions.

ESPN on WatchESPN and Sling TV

ESPNTo watch Monday Night Football, you need ESPN. If you have already have ESPN through a participating cable provider, you can watch the games live on the Roku WatchESPN channel. Otherwise, you can get ESPN as part of the Sling TV basic Best of Live TV Package for only $20 a month after a 7-day free trial.

NFL Game Pass

NFL GamePassThe NFL promised to launch a new Roku channel that would provide access to NFL Now and NFL GamePass. That channel is not yet available, but you can get access to both NFL Now and NFL Game Pass through PLEX. You will need to download and install the Plex Media Server on your computer and then link your Roku to your Plex account. Add the NFL Network channel from the Plex Media Server. Launch the Plex channel on your Roku and you'll have free access to NFL.com and NFL Now videos.

PLEXNFL GamePass US and NFL GamePass International subscribers will need to complete one extra step: Open the NFL Network channel within the Plex Media Server on your computer, select the settings button near the upper right-hand corner of the screen, and enter your GamePass credentials.

Both the Plex Media Server and the Plex Roku channel are free, although you can purchase a premium subscription for more features. Aside from the obvious need for a home computer, the biggest drawback is that Plex streams the NFL Network channel from the Plex Media Server to your Roku. This means that your computer must be turned on, it must be on the same home network as your Roku, and Plex Media Server must be running on your computer while you watch on your Roku.

NFL SUNDAY TICKET

If you are already a DirecTV customer with a subscription to NFL SUNDAY TICKET MAX or NFLSUNDAYTICKET.TV, can stream live NFL games through your Roku even if your TV is not connected to your satellite dish and receiver. If you can't subscribe to DirecTV due to restrictions on installing a satellite dish at your home (such as at apartments, condos, and townhomes), you may be eligible to subscribe to NFLSUNDAYTICKET.TV without a DirecTV subscription. NFLSUNDAYTICKET.TV is also available at a discount to students at all four-year colleges and universities. Visit our NFL Sunday Ticket channel page for more information.

CBS Sports

ESPNIf you don't have cable or satellite, you will need an over the air (OTA) antennae to get most of the NFL games on CBS. However, CBS Sports will stream two regular season NFL games, four NFL playoff games and Super Bowl 50 through their CBSSports.com Roku channel (as well as through other connected devices).



THE NFL HAS VERY LUCRATIVE CONTRACTS with the big networks - ESPN, CBS, FOX, and so on. A lot of money is at stake, so do not expect free streaming of all the games anytime soon.