CBS Sports’ alternate NFL broadcasts on Nickelodeon have been a hit during the wild-card round of the playoffs the past two seasons (a screencap from the 2021 game is seen at top), even leading to some Nickelodeon-style highlights at halftime during Super Bowl LV in 2021. Now, CBS is bringing that to the regular season. They announced on CBS This Morning Tuesday (as part of this year’s elongated NFL schedule release, many particular games are being announced before the full reveals this Thursday, with this one making the cut as a “select game”) that they’ll have a Christmas Day afternoon (4:30 p.m. ET) matchup of the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams, aired on both CBS and Nickelodeon:
CHRISTMAS DAY GAME: @CowherCBS and @nateburleson reveal a holiday present for football fans — the Los Angeles Rams will take on the Denver Broncos for a rare Christmas Day game on @NFLonCBS. pic.twitter.com/ridibv06ZZ
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) May 10, 2022
We've got a present for fans of all ages.
The @Broncos and @RamsNFL will face off on Christmas Day in a showdown on CBS along with a slime-filled presentation on @Nickelodeon. pic.twitter.com/FehuLpV3fS
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) May 10, 2022
The Paramount+ option mentioned there will be for the CBS broadcast, as normal (Paramount+ includes access to live broadcasts from your local CBS affiliate); the Nickelodeon broadcast will be exclusive to that linear (and streaming-authenticated) channel. Here’s more on what to expect there from CBS’ release:
Today on CBS Mornings, CBS Sports and Nickelodeon announced they are teaming up once again to reach NFL fans of all ages. This season’s collaboration will be a nationally televised Christmas Day game between the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, Dec. 25, at 4:30 PM, ET. CBS Sports’ presentation will be broadcast on The CBS Television Network and available to stream live on Paramount+ while a special slime-filled telecast tailored for family-viewing fun will air exclusively on Nickelodeon. That week, the majority of NFL games will be played on Saturday, Dec. 24.
In previous years, CBS Sports and Nickelodeon presented the kid-friendly telecast during NFL Super Wild Card weekend alongside the NFL ON CBS broadcast on CBS. This season’s collaboration will shift to the holidays and bring fans this special Christmas Day game as Russell Wilson and the Broncos take on Matthew Stafford and the reigning Super Bowl champions in Los Angeles.
NFL vice president of broadcast planning Mike North revealed last month that with Christmas Day falling on Sunday this year, the league is planning to play a Christmas Day tripleheader for the first time ever. That will also include an afternoon game on Fox and a night game on NBC. We don’t yet know details on those games, but it’s interesting to see the details on the matchup CBS has landed, and to see that it will include the first regular-season Nickelodeon alternate feed.
