Sunday Night Football's Texans-Chiefs Game Getting EA Sports Madden NFL Cast: Everything to Know

Sure, it’s one thing to talk about NFL quarterbacks like the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and the Houston Texans’ C.J. Stroud putting up video game numbers. But it’s another thing entirely to watch them air it out on the field as if they really are playing inside an actual video game.

But something pretty darn close to that is what Peacock viewers can expect from a first-of-its-kind broadcast of the upcoming matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Houston Texans. In partnership with EA Sports’ Madden NFL 25, Peacock will be live streaming an alternate feed of the Texans-Chiefs game (kicking off at 1 p.m. ET on December 21) that fuses the addictive gameplay elements from the immensely popular Madden NFL 25 video game with the actual live action as it unfolds on the field. 

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What to know about Peacock’s EA Sports Madden NFL Cast of the Texans-Chiefs game on December 21

Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs rushes with the ball against the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 28, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. Photo: Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Announced during halftime of NBC and Peacock’s Thanksgiving Day broadcast between the Miami Dolphins and Green Bay Packers, the first-ever EA Sports Madden NFL Cast will reimagine live football by incorporating features from Madden NFL 25 right into the action in a way that’ll feel amazingly familiar to fans of the video game itself. 

Nope, you won’t need an actual game controller in your hand to enjoy what’s happening on the screen — but it’ll look and feel pretty close to a real-time watch party for a Madden NFL 25 matchup... with the added twist that it’s all overlaid on top of a real NFL game, and hosted by some of your favorite NFL names!

C.J. Stroud of the Houston Texans scrambles under pressure from Nick Herbig of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first quarter during the preseason game at Acrisure Stadium on August 9, 2024 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Photo: Justin Berl/Getty Images

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Pretty cool, right? Adding to the immersion in this innovative crossover between video game and live action will be an all-pro cast of on-air voices, including NBC Sports’ Paul Burmeister handling play-by-play duty while former NFL quarterback, YouTuber, and Madden NFL expert Kurt Benkert employs graphic overlays to discuss and predict play options. 

On top of that, six-time Cincinnati Bengals Pro Bowl wide receiver Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson — a guy who frequently discussed his own Madden rating in production meetings with the legendary John Madden — will serve as a real-time player “ratings adjuster.” The Chiefs and Texans might keep Ochocinco especially busy for this one, too: Between the two teams, there are no fewer than 11 players entering the December 21 contest who hold a Madden rating above 90 (including Chiefs stars Mahomes and Travis Kelce, two of only six players overall to begin the current NFL season in the “Madden 99 Club,” which features players with 99 player ratings).