Vikings vs Patriots: How to watch, game time, TV schedule, streaming and more

For the first time in franchise history, the Minnesota Vikings are hosting a game on Thanksgiving, as they’ll cap off Thursday’s triple-header when they face the New England Patriots at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings have played eight times on Thanksgiving in their history, and have won six of those eight games. However, because the third Thanksgiving Day is something that’s just recently come about, it’s giving teams that aren’t Detroit and Dallas the opportunity to host these games.

We want to make sure that everyone has the ability to follow along with all of the action from Minneapolis this evening, so we’re putting all of the information you need right here in one place.

Television Info

Yes, this game puts the Vikings into a dreaded. . .well, for most of us, anyway. . .prime-time slot, with kickoff slated for 7:20 PM Central time this evening. This game will be shown on NBC, which is KARE-11 in the Twin Cities. There’s no need for the 506 Sports map or DirecTV listings for this one, since it’s literally going to be the only game in town.

For our men and women in uniform serving overseas, this game will be shown LIVE on the American Forces Network, specifically on AFN Sports. . .but if you’re going to be watching it live, it’s gonna be a late night/early morning for you wherever you are. Kickoff is scheduled for 0000Z on Friday, which works out to 0200L on Friday morning for viewers in Central Europe, 0400L on Friday morning for those on Arabian Standard Time, and 1000L on Friday morning for fans in Japan and Korea.

Radio Info

As usual, the Vikings Radio Network affiliates throughout the upper midwest will be carrying this one. If you’re not sure who the affiliates in your area are, feel free to check the link for the full list.

If you’re going to be using satellite radio to follow this one, you’ll find the Vikings Radio Network feed on Channels 85 and 227. You’ll also be able to listen to the national feed from Westwood One on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Channel 88, or in español on Channel 392. If you’re using the SiriusXM app, the Vikings’ permanent home there is on Channel 820.

Referee Info

The team at Football Zebras informs us that the officiating crew for this Thursday night clash will be led by Alex Kemp. This will be the first time the Vikings have seen Kemp since the 2020 season, when his crew did two Vikings games: their 28-11 loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Indy and their 28-22 victory over the Green Bay Packers in Green Bay.

Weather Info

The game itself won’t be affected by any sort of weather conditions, as we know. As far as any pre-game activities and your travels to and from U.S. Bank Stadium, it should be just about as good a night as you could hope for according to our friends from WeatherNation. Temperatures in the Twin Cities will peak in the mid-30s during the day and be down to around freezing by kickoff with some light winds out of the south and no chance of precipitation.

Betting Info

The folks over at the DraftKings Sportsbook now show the Vikings as a 2.5-point favorite, which means the line has dropped about a point from when it opened on Sunday evening. The over/under currently sits at 42.5, which is about half a point below the original total. If you want to keep track of what the lines are doing between now and kickoff, DraftKings is the place to look.

Streaming Info

Because this game is on NBC, it will be streamed legally via their Peacock service. You can also get the game on NFL GamePass, or by checking out a service such as Fubo TV or Sling TV.

As far as illegal streams are concerned, I’ll just say the same thing I say every year: don’t. You’ll be banned and I won’t care how hard you cry about it.

Post-Game Info

Following the game, we will be offering not one, but two live post-game shows. Vikings Report with Drew and Ted will be offering up their live show with Drew, Ted, and Chris, while our friends from Climbing the Pocket will have a live post-game show for your viewing pleasure as well. The Vikings Report show will be on their YouTube channel and getting a post here with a video embed, while the Climbing the Pocket show will be on their YouTube channel as well as the Daily Norseman FaceBook page.

That should be all the information you need in order to follow along with all of the action from U.S. Bank Stadium this afternoon between the Vikings and the Patriots. As we usually do, we will have our Open Thread for the first quarter of play up and running about an hour before kickoff, which tonight will see it dropping around 6:20 PM Central time.