NFL Schedule 2024 Week 1

Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs will take on Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in week 1.

Week 1 of the new NFL season is one of the most exciting times of the year as it brings the promise of a new season. For the players, it is about new challenges and aspirations to lift the Lombardi Trophy. As for the fans, the excitement cannot be any less as week 1 means the football season is back once again after a long wait of six-plus months.

As is the typical format of the NFL for the past few years, this year the first game of the season will be played on a Thursday night. The exact date is Thursday, September 05, 2024, and it will feature the defending Super Bowl Champions - the Kansas City Chiefs in their home that is the Arrowhead Stadium. They will be welcoming their rivals and last season’s AFC Conference Championship game opponents - the Baltimore Ravens in a game that promises nothing but fireworks to open the new season.

Let us now take a look at the NFL week 1 schedule in full and some of the other key matchups that should have fans on the edge of their seats.

NFL Schedule Week 1

Game on Thursday, September 05

• Baltimore Ravens at Kansas City Chiefs

One of the biggest games to get a new NFL season underway will be between the Baltimore Ravens and the defending champions Kansas City Chiefs. These teams met recently in the AFC Championship Game the previous season and they both possess great players as well as being well-coached outfits. The Ravens will look to avenge their loss while the Chiefs will want to get things off on the right foot as they start their quest for a historic three-peat.

Game on Friday, September 06

• Green Bay Packers at Philadelphia Eagles

In another global outreach effort by the NFL, this game between the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles will be the first game to be played in South America. The Eagles are the home team and the game will be played at Arena Corinthians in Sao Paulo, Brazil. It will be interesting to see how the two teams start off their new campaigns especially since the Eagles, after a blistering start to 2023 fell off completely towards the end.

Games on Sunday, September 08

Being week 1 of the 2024 NFL season, almost all games are sure to generate some type of buzz as fans will be eager to get a first-hand view of how well their teams have prepared. Nevertheless, there are a few games that have some interesting storylines attached to them.

• Tennessee Titans at Chicago Bears

One of the more intriguing matchups in week 1 will be between the Tennessee Titans and the Chicago Bears. This game will be exciting to watch since both teams have had a terrific offseason with free agent signings and the NFL Draft. As a result, both teams have bolstered their squads with the Titans adding wideouts such as Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd to pair with DeAndre Hopkins. They also signed cornerback L’Jarius Sneed from the Chiefs.

As for the Bears, this will be the first time we get to see the 2024 NFL Draft overall number one pick, Caleb Williams make his professional football debut. The Bears have provided him with several gifts of his own with the likes of wide receivers DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and fellow first-round draftee, Rome Odunze.

• Las Vegas Raiders at Los Angeles Chargers

With the Las Vegas Raiders visiting the Los Angeles Chargers, there are bound to be some fireworks as the two divisional rivals square off for the first time this season. The Raiders are still building their team and looking for the perfect fit at the quarterback position. They will have to decide between Gardner Minshew or Aidan O’Connell.

The Chargers on the other hand will get their Jim Harbaugh era under way. Harbaugh, who had good success earlier in his NFL stint as the head coach of the 49ers is fresh off a CFP National Championship with the Michigan Wolverines.

• Los Angeles Rams at Detroit Lions

The Los Angeles Rams travel to Detroit to take on the Lions in another rematch of last year’s playoff matchup. The Rams took on the Lions in the Wild Card Game in which the Lions prevailed. It is a new season and this game will give us an idea of how the two teams have fared in the offseason as they go at one another once again. Furthermore, it is another chapter in the Matthew Stafford vs Jared Goff book after the two starting quarterbacks were traded in exchange for another.

Game on Monday, September 09

• New York Jets at San Francisco 49ers

The first Monday Night Game of the 2024-25 NFL season will feature the New York Jets who make the long trip to the West Coast to take on last season’s Super Bowl losing team, the San Francisco 49ers. This should be an interesting matchup, to say the least as hopefully a fit and fully healthy Aaron Rodgers will be going up against Brock Purdy who managed to lead his team to a Super Bowl berth in just his second season.

Overall, the 49ers are a much better team with a better coaching staff as well. After losing Rodgers in the first game last year, the Jets could not recover their season. Therefore, they will be looking to take the game to the 49ers from the get-go.