Coverage Begins with FNIA at 7:30 p.m. ET; Followed by Game at 8 p.m. ET
Matchup Features Two of the Five Highest-Scoring Teams in NFL in 2024
SNF Delivers Best Viewership Since 2015, Pacing to be Primetime’s #1 Show for Unprecedented 14th Consecutive Year; Click Here for Details
STAMFORD, Conn. – Jan. 8, 2025 – Rookie Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders visit Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a matchup of two of the NFL’s five highest-scoring teams in the NFC Wild Card Playoffs from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., this Sunday, Jan. 12, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC, Peacock, and Universo. Coverage begins with a special edition of Football Night in America at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
The Buccaneers (10-7), who ranked fourth in the NFL averaging 29.5 points per game, won the NFC South for the fourth consecutive season, tied for the longest streak in division history, and are the only NFC team to make the playoffs in each of the last five seasons. Last postseason, they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card round before falling to the Detroit Lions in the Divisional Round. The Commanders (12-5), the fifth highest scoring team (28.5 points per game), earned a postseason berth for the first time since 2020, where they also faced the Buccaneers in the Wild Card round, losing 31-23. This will be the first Wild Card game since 2020 to feature two teams that averaged over 28 points per game in the regular season.
The teams met in Week 1, also in Tampa, with the Buccaneers topping the Commanders 37-20 as Mayfield passed for 289 yards and four touchdowns. The game also marked Daniels’ NFL debut, as he amassed 272 total yards (184 passing, 88 rushing) and two rushing touchdowns.
In their last postseason meeting in the Wild Card round of the 2020 season, in a game also called by NBC Sports’ Mike Tirico, Tom Brady, in his playoff debut as a Buccaneer, outdueled Taylor Heinicke to lead Tampa Bay to a 31-23 win en route to a Super Bowl LV victory. Brady threw for 381 yards and two touchdowns, while wide receiver Mike Evans had 119 receiving yards on six receptions and running back Leonard Fournette ran for 93 yards and a score.
Washington and Tampa Bay also met in the 2005 Wild Card round, where Mark Brunell, with only 41 passing yards, led Washington to a 17-10 victory over quarterback and current NBC Sports football analyst Chris Simms and the Buccaneers. Simms threw for 198 yards and rushed for a touchdown in his lone NFL postseason start. Additionally, Tampa Bay defeated Washington, 14-13, in the 1999 Divisional Round.
Last Sunday, the Buccaneers beat the New Orleans Saints, 27-19, to advance to the postseason for the fifth consecutive season. Mayfield threw for 221 yards and two touchdowns, while Evans had nine receptions for 89 yards, cementing his 11th consecutive season with at least 1,000 receiving yards (1,004 yards) and tying Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for the most consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons in NFL history. Rookie wide receiver Jalen McMillan continued his hot streak, catching his seventh touchdown in the past five games.
The Commanders defeated the Dallas Cowboys, 23-19, on the road on Sunday. Daniels, who played only the first quarter, had a stellar rookie campaign, finishing the season with the highest completion percentage (69%) and most rushing yards (891) by a rookie quarterback in NFL history. Daniels also became only the third rookie starting quarterback to win 12 games, joining Dak Prescott in 2016 and Ben Roethlisberger in 2004. Wide receiver Terry McLaurin capped his second career Pro Bowl season with 62 receiving yards and a touchdown. McLaurin earned his fifth consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season (1,096) and set a single-season franchise record with 13 touchdown catches.
Mike Tirico will call Commanders-Buccaneers alongside 17-time Emmy Award winner Cris Collinsworth (analyst) and Melissa Stark (sideline reporter). Three-time Super Bowl referee Terry McAulay will serve as rules analyst.
NBC’s coverage of Sunday Night Football is led by coordinating producer Rob Hyland and director Drew Esocoff. SNF has won a record 11 Sports Emmys for Outstanding Live Sports Series. Sam Flood is Executive Producer & President, NBC Sports Production. Fred Gaudelli is executive producer of NBC Sports’ NFL coverage.
Football Night in America is hosted by Maria Taylor and features former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett, three-time Super Bowl champion Devin McCourty, and former NFL quarterback Chris Simms, as well as Hall of Fame head coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl champion Rodney Harrison, NFL insider Mike Florio, fantasy sports industry pioneer Matthew Berry, and co-host Jac Collinsworth. Collinsworth, Dungy, and Harrison will report on-site from Raymond James Stadium.
Football Night, the most-watched studio show in sports since its debut in 2006, begins this Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET. The coordinating producer of FNIA is Matt Casey. FNIA is directed by Kaare Numme.
SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL DELIVERS BEST VIEWERSHIP SINCE 2015 & PACING TO BE PRIMETIME’S #1 SHOW FOR UNPRECEDENTED 14TH CONSECUTIVE YEAR
Sunday Night Football concluded the 2024 season topping all primetime television series in the fall and once again pacing to finish as primetime’s #1 TV show in all key metrics for an unprecedented 14th consecutive year.
Sunday Night Football averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 21.6 million viewers for the 2024 season – the show’s best viewership since 2015 and up 1% from last season (21.4 million), according to official national live plus same day data released by Nielsen, and digital data from Adobe Analytics. For more information, click here.
PEACOCK TO LIVE STREAM ALL NBC NFL GAMES THIS SEASON
All of NBC Sports’ NFL regular-season games, playoff games, and Football Night in America will stream live on Peacock this season. Peacock features a slate of sports talk content NFL fans can enjoy on the NBC Sports channel, which is free to stream. Shows include The Dan Patrick Show, PFT Live, PFT PM, Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry, Chris Simms Unbuttoned, and The Dan Le Batard Show w/ Stugotz.
To learn more about the NFL on Peacock, including how to watch and sign up, click here.
NBCSPORTS.COM & NBC SPORTS APP TO LIVE STREAM ALL NFL GAMES ON NBC
NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will stream live coverage to desktops, mobile, tablets, and connected TVs via authentication, giving consumers additional value to their subscription service, and making high-quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. The full HD-quality video stream will come directly from NBC’s broadcasts. NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app are available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Samsung Smart TVs, Xbox, and Chromecast.
TELEMUNDO DEPORTES TO PRESENT ENTIRE NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL SCHEDULE, INCLUDING PLAYOFFS
Telemundo Deportes will again provide exclusive Spanish-language coverage of the entire NBC Sunday Night Football package with 22 games across Telemundo, Universo, and Peacock.
The package features 18 regular-season Sunday Night Football games all airing on Universo and streaming on Peacock and the annual NFL Kickoff and Thanksgiving night games, which willair on Telemundo. Telemundo Deportes will present two playoff matchups, including a Divisional Playoff game and one Wild Card Playoff game. NFL games this season will also be available on live stream via TelemundoDeportes.com and the Telemundo Deportes app.
Telemundo Deportes’s SNF announce team consists of Emmy-award winning sports journalist and play-by-play announcer Miguel Gurwitz and former Arizona Cardinals offensive lineman Rolando Cantu with Ariana Figuera serving as analyst and supporting pre- and post-game studio coverage.
CHRIS SIMMS UNBUTTONED
NBC Sports’ Chris Simms examines everything happening in the NFL and around the sports world. Along with a rotation of NBC Sports hosts including Ahmed Fareed and Paul Burmeister, Chris Simms Unbuttoned analyses the NFL with in-depth Xs and Os breakdowns; one-on-one interviews with players, coaches and executives; and game recaps and preview. The show is available to stream on Peacock on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and is also available in podcast form here.
FANTASY FOOTBALL HAPPY HOUR WITH MATTHEW BERRY AND FANTASY FOOTBALL PREGAME
Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry, NBC Sports’ daily fantasy football and sports betting show, streams every weekday at 3 p.m. ET on Peacock, while Fantasy Football Pregame, featuring fantasy football news and advice from Matthew Berry, Michael Smith, Jay Croucher, and Lawrence Jackson, will be presented every Sunday throughout the season at 11 a.m. ET exclusively on Peacock.
Fantasy Football Happy Hour discusses the most newsworthy fantasy football and sports betting topics and is co-hosted by Jay Croucher and features analysis and advice from regular guests including NBC Sports’ Chris Simms and Mike Florio, NBC Sports EDGE’s Denny Carter, Pat Daugherty, Vaughn Dalzell, Lawrence Jackson, and more. The show, which is available on all major podcast platforms and via NBC Sports Audio on SiriusXM Radio, features fantasy football rankings, start/sit suggestions, waiver wire advice, betting futures, player props, and more.
FANTASY LIFE/ROTOWORLD
Fantasy Life, an industry-leading fantasy sports and sports betting media company founded by Matthew Berry and the official fantasy tools provider of NBC Sports’ Rotoworld, offers comprehensive fantasy football and betting coverage throughout the 2024 NFL season across NBC Sports’ fantasy sports platforms. Fantasy Life’s premium offering, FantasyLife+, will integrate NBC Sports Rotoworld’s Fantasy Football Draft Guide to create a destination for fantasy players to receive the best insights and analysis. Additionally, Berry’s annual “100 Facts” article, his renowned Love/Hate columns, and additional exclusive content from Rotoworld’s team of expert analysts is available now on NBC Sports’ Fantasy homepage. Click here for more information.
PFT LIVE – WEEKDAYS AT 7 A.M. ET ON PEACOCK
Mike Florio brings fans the latest NFL news and interviews with players and coaches every weekday morning with PFT Live streaming live on Peacock at 7 a.m. ET.
The two-hour PFT Live is known for delivering inside information and comprehensive analysis from an independent perspective. The show covers all the latest news around the league, breaks down reports and rumors and features interviews with players, coaches and executives.
PODCASTS
NBC Sports’ football podcasts provide extensive weekly offerings from NBC Sports’ most popular personalities and present special guests, exclusive interviews, and robust conversations across all of football on Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry, Chris Simms Unbuttoned, PFT PM, and Rotoworld Football Show, along with college football on B1G Talk with Todd and Noah and Rushing the Field.
Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry is NBC Sports’ fantasy daily sports betting show, Chris Simms Unbuttoned and PFT PM dive into deep conversations around the sports’ hottest topics, and Rotoworld Football Show explores fantasy implications for fans. New episodes of NBC Sports podcasts are available for download each week on all major podcast platforms including: NBCSports.com/podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn and iHeart.
SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL SOCIAL MEDIA
- SNF ON INSTAGRAM: Through the unique filter of Instagram, fans will get an in-depth look at each week’s Sunday Night Football game with the most engaging photos and videos from across the NFL. SNF also utilizes Instagram Stories for up-to-the-minute coverage of the league.
- SNF ON TWITTER: The very latest news, video, analysis from the Football Night in America crew and much more lives on @SNFonNBC, the real-time engine for NBC’s year-round NFL coverage.
- SNF ON FACEBOOK: With more than 3.6 million followers, SNF’s Facebook page is the hub of football conversation. It’s the place to converse and engage with fellow fans on the latest news and action across the NFL.
- NBC SPORTS ON TIKTOK: NBC Sports’ presence on TikTok puts the spotlight on the offbeat and exuberant side of the National Football League for a young, highly-engaged audience.
NBC SPORTS REGIONAL NETWORKS
NBC Sports Bay Area, NBC Sports Boston, and NBC Sports Philadelphia will again deliver extensive multiplatform coverage of the 2024 NFL season, led by comprehensive live gameday shows, in-depth news, analysis and commentary programming, and multimedia digital content covering the teams in their respective markets.
CARRIE UNDERWOOD
Eight-time Grammy Award-winner and multi-platinum recording artist Carrie Underwood stars in the show open for NBC’s Sunday Night Football. This year’s show open debuts this Sunday night, Sept. 8, before kickoff of Rams-Lions on NBC and Peacock.
The new open for primetime’s No. 1 show – headlined by an updated rendition of “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night” – celebrates the SNF “road show” that visits NFL cities each weekend, embracing the pageantry and anticipation for each matchup. Underwood performed the open from The Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas, home of her ongoing residency, REFLECTION.
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