Green Bay’s trip to Tampa Bay in Week 4 is shaping up to be a tough watch for Packers fans who live outside Wisconsin. With the Packers and Buccaneers combining for a 1-5 record, FOX has slotted this game well down its broadcast pecking order, and that means it won’t reach many local markets.
FOX holds the rights to Packers-Buccaneers, but the network’s crowded schedule makes this one a tough sell for widespread TV coverage. CBS has the doubleheader this week, which narrows things even further because markets have to sort through five FOX games across two time windows.
According to 506sports.com, the game will be carried in the green areas on the map, which are limited to Wisconsin, Michigan, and portions of Florida.
For fans outside those areas, the options are pretty simple: NFL Sunday Ticket or a bar or restaurant with the package.
The broadcast booth isn’t exactly a bonus either. Jonathan Vilma will be on the color call for the second time in three weeks, this time alongside play-by-play announcer Chris Myers.
FOX has shuffled its lower-tier announcers up a spot because Joe Davis, the network’s No. 2 play-by-play voice, is off calling playoff baseball games. That move pushes Kenny Albert into Davis’ usual spot with Greg Olsen, while Myers moves up to work with Vilma.
FOX’s top crew, Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady, will handle Rams-Eagles, which is marked in red on the map. Blue is Cowboys-Texans, yellow is Jets-Bears, and orange is Dolphins-Vikings.
There is one small workaround for out-of-market Packers fans: NFL Sunday Ticket offers a free 7-day trial for new subscribers, which could be the easiest way to catch the game at home without making a bigger financial commitment.
In Other News...
Packers-Bears Just Lost The Spotlight At Lambeau
The league has pushed the Packers-Bears Week 5 meeting at Lambeau Field into a noon kickoff, moving the rivalry out of its original late-afternoon slot. What was set for 3:25 p.m. Central will now start at 12 p.m., a shift tied to Green Bays slow start and Chicagos quarterback injury, with FOX opting to carry 49ers-Seahawks in the later window instead.
For Green Bay, the timing change still leaves a notable bit of pageantry intact. The Packers are set to debut their new Rivalries uniforms in the game, giving one of the NFLs oldest matchups a fresh look even if it no longer has the spotlight that originally came with the later kickoff. [Read more 🡒]
Packers O-Line Issues Forced Gutekunst To Finally Act
After the loss to the Atlanta Falcons, Brian Gutekunst finally said out loud what has been obvious for weeks: the Packers offensive line was in trouble. Injuries and uneven play up front have helped drag down the run game and left Jordan Love taking too many hits, turning a preseason concern into a real in-season problem for Green Bay.
Gutekunsts first move was to bring in veteran guard Laken Tomlinson from the Dallas Cowboys practice squad, a clear sign the Packers are trying to patch things before the damage gets worse. Whether one addition is enough to stabilize a line that has already been through so much is still the bigger question hanging over the offense. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Make Another O-Line Move As Pressure Builds Around Jordan Love
The Packers kept reshaping their offensive line by adding veteran guard Kevin Zeitler on a one-year deal, another clear sign they are trying to steady a group that has not looked up to standard through the first three weeks. Green Bay had already brought in Laken Tomlinson and Mekhi Becton, piling up experienced options as the front office works to give Jordan Love cleaner pockets and get the run game moving with more consistency.
The sequence of moves says plenty about where the urgency sits right now. Protection has been an issue, the offense has felt it, and the Packers are responding with a veteran-heavy approach that should at least raise the floor up front. Whether this collection of linemen is enough to settle the line for good is the next question, and it is one Green Bay can not avoid for much longer. [Read more 🡒]