Super Bowl 2017: Patriots vs. Falcons TV Schedule, Commercials and Start Time

There are only three more nights until the Super Bowl Sunday showdown between the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons, which kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 5. 

By now, you probably know that the Patriots are favored by three points, per OddsShark, and that the game is expected to be a shootout between the high-powered offenses led by New England's Tom Brady and Atlanta's Matt Ryan. 

After all, the Falcons and the Patriots were two of the highest-scoring teams during the 2016 regular season, averaging 33.8 points and 27.6 points per game, respectively. Those were the highest and third-highest marks in the league. 

Given all the coverage leading up to Super Bowl LI, you may have already heard all of that. Let's get into the great unknown, one of the most enjoyable parts of Super Bowl Sunday: commercials.

Below you'll find the TV schedule for Sunday's game action and then a preview of what we know so far about the can't-miss ads this year. 

Date	Location	Time	TV	AFC	NFC	Point Spread	Prediction
Feb. 5	NRG Stadium, Houston	6:30 p.m. ET	Fox	New England	Atlanta	NE -3	Patriots

Super Bowl Commercials Preview

Buffalo Wild Wings

Sometimes brands release a teaser or one of multiple versions of their ads a few days before the Super Bowl to generate buzz, and that seems to be Buffalo Wild Wings' plan with its spot featuring Brett Favre:

In the commercial, a mysterious duo (Men in black? Observers from Fringe?) seems to have something to do with Favre's nagging inaccuracy in his throws. 

The ad ends with the question, "What the Favre?" Presumably, we'll find out more with a subsequent spot Sunday. 

Snickers

Super Bowl commercials are all about upping the stakes (and budgets) every year, and Snickers has found a clever way to do just that: The brand will film its Super Bowl commercial, featuring Kylo Ren himself, Adam Driver, live:

"

On February 5th, the curtain drops on our live Super Bowl commercial, starring Adam Driver. #SB51 pic.twitter.com/6R16O9ZVda

— SNICKERS® (@SNICKERS) January 30, 2017"

The commercial promises to feature "a showdown, stunt horses and some other stuff we're still thinking of."

That's one way to make sure viewers don't change the channel.

Intel

The next time you're picking lottery numbers, you might want to consult Intel. The brand lined up Brady for its Super Bowl spot before New England had secured a berth to the big game. 

The ad, called "Brady Everyday," features the quarterback going about his morning routine (brushing his teeth, eating a pancake that fell on the floor), but the Intel 360 technology makes every task look epic. 

Intel is introducing the 360 technology at the Super Bowl and will allow Fox broadcasters to "show a play from virtually any spot in the stadium within minutes of the action taking place," according to Jimmy Golen of AP Sports (h/t CBS Boston). 

Pretty cool stuff. 

Skittles

Skittles and Marshawn Lynch go together like the Super Bowl and buffalo wings, so it's no surprise the two have teamed up for one of the most hyped ads ahead of the big game. 

Lynch goes to Houston to hand out Skittles and spread the love of his favorite candy. That is...Houston, Scotland. 

The brightly colored brand also premiered another Super Bowl LI commercial called "Romance," in which a teen trying to get the object of his affection's attention by throwing Skittles at her window hits an unforeseen snafu:

That commercial has nearly 5 million views on YouTube and is worth watching all the way to the end for an unexpected surprise critter who really likes Skittles.