Why isn’t Sunday Night Football on tonight, Christmas Eve 2017?

Sunday Night Football isn’t on every Sunday of the year, and sometimes that even happens during the football season, but is it on tonight?

Although it’s entirely possible you’ve spent most of this Christmas Eve watching NFL football, you may have already flipped over to NBC to tune in for Sunday Night Football, only to find that things are a little different this week. That’s because, well, today is also Christmas Eve. And while NBC definitely likes airing football, it also has a tradition of its own for the holiday season: airing It’s a Wonderful Life on Christmas Eve night.

In fact, Football Night in America also won’t air at all. Instead, the 7 p.m. hour will be taken up by a few of NBC’s Christmas specials, and then It’s a Wonderful Life will kick off at 8 p.m. ET. As a result, the next NFL game won’t air until Christmas Day, Dec. 25, at 4:30 p.m. ET.

It’s a bit of a messed-up schedule, but it’s a weird pair of days for Christmas Eve and Day to fall on in the first place.

However, there are plenty of games on earlier in the day. Per the NFL schedule, linked above, the early slate (starting at 1 p.m. ET) is as follows, with the home team listed second:

"CBS: Buffalo Bills vs. New England PatriotsLos Angeles Chargers vs. New York JetsDenver Broncos vs. Washington RedskinsMiami Dolphins vs. Kansas City ChiefsCleveland Browns vs. Chicago BearsFox: Atlanta Falcons vs. New Orleans SaintsTampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Carolina PanthersDetroit Lions vs. Cincinnati BengalsLos Angeles Rams vs. Tennessee Titans"

Meanwhile, there are just three games starting around 4 p.m. ET. The earliest is on CBS, and will feature the San Francisco 49ers hosting the Jacksonville Jaguars. Meanwhile, Fox has the other two games at 4:25 p.m. ET — the New York Giants vs. the Arizona Cardinals or the Seattle Seahawks vs. the Dallas Cowboys, depending on market.

Next: 25 of TV's messiest meltdowns

What you watch instead of Sunday Night Football is up to you — but be aware that NBC does get its “Sunday Night Football” on Christmas Day at 4:30 p.m. ET, with the Houstan Texans hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers.