If you’ve ever sat down on a Sunday afternoon, cold beverage in hand, only to find a blowout between two losing teams on your screen instead of the high-stakes playoff battle you expected, you know the frustration. Regional sports broadcasting is a tangled web of contracts, "protected" markets, and last-minute flexes. Understanding the NFL TV map week 16 is basically a part-time job during the holidays, especially with the league spreading games across Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
Honestly, Week 16 is where things get weird. The NFL loves to tinker with the schedule late in the season to ensure the biggest audiences see the most meaningful games. For 2025, that meant moving a massive matchup like New England at Baltimore into the Sunday Night Football slot and bumping the original Bengals-Dolphins game back to the afternoon.
The Saturday Doubleheader Chaos
Most fans are used to the Sunday routine. But in Week 16, the league decided to hijack your Saturday too. FOX took over the airwaves with a national doubleheader that essentially thinned out the Sunday morning slate. You had the Eagles visiting the Commanders in the late afternoon, followed by a massive NFC North clash between the Packers and Bears at Soldier Field.
Because these were national FOX broadcasts, they didn't follow the usual regional map rules. Everyone saw them. This shift is why the Sunday NFL TV map week 16 looked a little sparse in the 1:00 p.m. ET window. If you felt like there were fewer options than usual while scrolling through your guide on Sunday morning, you weren't imagining things.
CBS Early Window: The Ian Eagle and J.J. Watt Show
CBS handled the bulk of the early Sunday action, but they really only had one game with major playoff implications: the Buffalo Bills taking on the Cleveland Browns. Because of that, Ian Eagle and J.J. Watt (who has been a revelation in the booth, by the way) were heard in almost every living room from Maine to California.
- The "Red" Zone: The Bills-Browns game covered nearly 80% of the country.
- The "Blue" Zone: Kansas City at Tennessee was mostly restricted to local markets and the AFC South footprint.
- The "Green" Zone: Bengals at Miami, the game that got bumped from primetime, was relegated to regional coverage in the South and parts of Ohio.
- The "Yellow" Zone: Jets at Saints was basically a local-only affair for the tri-state area and Louisiana.
It’s kinda wild how one "flex" can change what millions of people see. If the NFL hadn't moved the Ravens game to Sunday night, we probably would have seen a much more balanced distribution of these games.
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FOX Single Game: Regional Logic at Work
Unlike CBS, FOX didn't have a doubleheader on Sunday because they used their big guns on Saturday. This meant you only got one FOX game all day Sunday. Most of the country ended up with the Chargers at Cowboys. Even though Dallas was having a rough year, the "America's Team" brand still carries weight with network executives.
However, if you lived in the Pacific Northwest or the Rocky Mountains, your NFL TV map week 16 looked totally different. You likely saw the Jaguars at Denver in the late afternoon slot. This is where "cross-flexing" comes into play. Even though the Jaguars are an AFC team, FOX can carry their games to balance out the schedule. It's confusing, sure, but it's all about maximizing those advertising dollars.
Sunday Night Flex: The Patriots vs. Ravens Switch
The biggest story of the week was the NFL exercising its flex power to put the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens in the spotlight. Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth got a much better game out of it. The Patriots, led by a revitalized roster, were fighting for a top seed while Baltimore was clawing to stay alive in the AFC North.
This move is a perfect example of why you can't trust the schedule you printed out in August. The league can move Sunday afternoon games to Sunday night with as little as 12 days' notice. For the fans traveling to Baltimore, it was a headache. For the millions watching at home, it was a massive upgrade over the struggling Bengals.
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Monday Night Finale: 49ers vs. Colts
To wrap it all up, ESPN and ABC simulcast the 49ers at the Colts. This was a "National" game in every sense of the word. No maps needed. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman handled the call as San Francisco tried to maintain their win streak.
Interestingly, there was no Manningcast for this one. Peyton and Eli took the week off, which felt like a missed opportunity given Philip Rivers' history with the Colts, but the standard broadcast still pulled huge numbers.
How to Stay Ahead of the Map
If you’re tired of being at the mercy of your local affiliate, you've basically got two options.
- NFL Sunday Ticket: Now on YouTube TV, this is the only way to bypass the regional maps entirely. If you’re a displaced fan—like a Steelers fan living in Seattle—it’s pretty much mandatory.
- The 506 Sports Check: Every Wednesday, the legends over at 506 Sports release the color-coded maps. It is the gold standard for knowing exactly what will be on your TV.
Next time you're planning a watch party, don't just assume the "big game" is the one you'll get. Check the regional footprints specifically for your zip code at least 48 hours before kickoff. Markets like Louisville or Indianapolis often flip-flop between games based on late-week roster changes or playoff scenarios.
Keep your eyes on the flex scheduling windows for the final weeks of the season. The NFL can move games in Week 17 and 18 with even less notice than they did for Week 16, so staying flexible is the only way to ensure you don't miss a single snap of the postseason race.