NFL Plus Review

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What is NFL Plus?

For nearly two decades now, the NFL has offered some form of streaming access to its games via NFL+ (formerly NFL Game Pass) -- originally named NFL Field Pass. This year, the streaming service is getting its most significant makeover yet, shifting from the NFL Game Pass moniker to NFL+. Along with the name change come a number of other tweaks, as well.

At the core is the same product: live access to audio of every NFL game -- preseason, regular season, and postseason with no market restrictions. On top of that, there's now live streaming video available for local and primetime matchups (as long as you're watching on a mobile device). You'll also get to watch NFL Network live and on-demand through the service, and access the league's deep pool of titles from its NFL Films library.

NFL+ starts at $5/mo. or $30/yr. for this service, but you can get more with NFL+ Premium. While you'll pay $10/mo. or $80/yr., you'll get access to full and condensed replays of all games, available on any device, including set-top boxes. You'll also get the Coaches Film, sometimes called All-22 footage that shows the full field. All of these playback options are ad-free and ideal for the football obsessive who wants to see all the gridiron action.

Navigating the offerings of NFL's livestream is a bit complicated, as streaming rights for the league's titles are disparate and can be hard to navigate. NFL+ offers the best type of live access, including audio for all games and video for most local and primetime games, as long as you are watching on mobile.

It also has the most robust options for watching games after they air. NFL RedZone is the best option for people trying to watch every game as it airs, as it offers a specialized experience that bounces between action every Sunday. NFL Sunday Ticket offers arguably the best product for live games, but is cost prohibitive. 

How Much Does NFL Plus Cost?

This year, NFL+ offers two different tiers: $5/mo. (or $30/yr.) for the basic package that offers live audio and video for most games, or $10/mo. (or $80/yr.) for the NFL+ Premium service that offers three different ad-free playback options for game replays. While there's only a seven-day free trial available, the overall NFL+ offering is more budget-friendly and more robust than the previous plans offered under the NFL Game Pass branding.

NFL Plus Titles and Add-ons

NFL+ has a two-prong approach to accessing games: There's the live arm, which offers live audio to basically every game and live video of local and prime time games -- but only on mobile devices. This is a bit restrictive -- a much more limited viewing experience than the big screen TV at the bar that you might otherwise watch on. But it's great for folks who find themselves on-the-go on game day.

A major selling point for NFL+, particularly those willing to bump up to the Premium subscription plan, is the ability to access full game replays. Watch every moment of the action, condensed games with just the plays and none of the downtime, or zoom out and watch the Coaches Film that shows all 22 players on screen for the duration of every play. It's the football watcher's dream, and a feature you can only access after a game has aired. 

If your urge for football goes beyond just the games, there is access to the NFL Network -- available live or on demand -- as well as the full archive of titles from the NFL Films team. This includes interviews with players and coaches and coverage from around the game that you can't find anywhere else. There's also the NFL Originals library, which includes shows like All or Nothing, A Football Life, Good Morning Football, Hard Knocks, NFL GameDay, Fantasy Live, and NFL Total Access.

NFL Plus Compared

If you're not worried about watching games live, NFL+ is hard to beat. You'll be able to watch all of the regular season games in your market and the prime time showdowns on your mobile device. Unfortunately, you won't be able to watch out-of-market like you would with NFL Sunday Ticket -- though you can listen in to the audio feed at any time. NFL+ is also a fraction of the cost of NFL Sunday Ticket, and is much easier to access on any device. NFL Sunday Ticket is usually only available to those who have DIRECTV. 

If you want to watch games live without cable TV, other good options to try are Hulu + Live TV and fuboTV -- a subscription is $65/mo., and the service carries live games broadcast on NBC, CBS, Fox, and ESPN. While you won't be able to catch every game, many of them will be available to watch live.

The streaming service fuboTV is another good option for sports fans. A fuboTV subscription also starts at $65/mo. and includes access to live NFL games on CBS, ESPN, Fox, and NBC, as well as the NFL Network. You can also get access to NFL RedZone with fuboTV's Sports Plus add-on for an additional $11/mo. 

So fans of pro football have a few different options for streaming games. But for under $80/yr. for an entire year of viewing, NFL+ is easily the cheapest when it comes to replays. Just consider it like recording the live action via DVR to watch later.

NFL Plus Features

Although this is a football-specific streaming service, NFL+ includes a few helpful features for watching that you might find with some of the popular, general streaming platforms. Subscribers can watch more than one screen at the same time, as well as download titles for offline viewing. NFL+ also includes quite a few handy playback features for the game replays. 

Simultaneous Streams

NFL+ has no limit on the number of concurrent streams allowed.

Watching offline

Unlike NFL Game Pass, NFL+ does not allow any offline viewing. There is no way to download titles to your device and watch without an internet connection.

Playback Features

One of the coolest features NFL+ offers is playback features on game replays. The "coaches film" feature allows you to watch plays from different angles like the "All-22" angle and the "EndZone" angle. However, this feature is unavailable for preseason games. 

You can also watch condensed versions of games that are around 30 minutes long and feature all the play back-to-back. There is also the "big play markers" option that allows you to skip to the most exciting moments of a game. 

Subscribers can choose to watch as many as four games at once with the "quad view," and you choose to watch plays in slow motion. There are also the standard playback options of rewind, fast-forward, and closed captioning. 

Live Audio Broadcasts

Although the game video feeds are replays, subscribers can tune into the audio broadcasts for games live. You can choose between streaming the radio broadcasts of both the home and away teams during games so that you can listen to your favorite announcers calling the plays. 

NFL Plus Supported Devices

You can stream on NFL+ in many different ways. Watch on web browsers, by signing directly to NFL+ using a streaming device, or using the official NFL app. Here are all of the devices that are supported right now:

• Smartphones (Android & Apple iOS)

• Tablets (Android & Apple iOS)

• Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD

• Amazon Fire TV

• Android TV (Google TV)

• Roku (U.S. users only)

Is NFL Plus Worth It?

Having access to all of the regular season games is an excellent value for fans who don't mind watching replays instead of live NFL games. And because it's difficult, if not impossible, to stream all of the NFL games live with any one service, NFL+ can also be used as a way to catch up on the games that you can't watch live with your regular streaming service or cable TV provider. 

If you are searching for live NFL games streaming, check out services like fuboTV or Sling TV instead.