Late Thursday the NFL released its official 2017-18 schedule like it was a red carpet event, and maybe at this point it is. With the debut of the schedule, we all have an excuse to go through it week by week and pick what we will like will be the key game, but I don’t do that. The fact is, everything we think about the upcoming season is based on last season and when you get past Week One, none of that really matters.
So with that in mind, I want to take a look at what appear to be the best, or at least most intriguing games of the opening week of the NFL season. I’m including all the prime time games, because we’ll all be watching them, but there are some solid contests on Sunday that might tempt you to invest in NFL Sunday Ticket.
Thursday, Sept. 7
Kansas City Chiefs at New England Patriots
The defending Super Bowl champions open up the season against one of the AFC teams with a legitimate chance to dethrone them. The Chiefs bring back a solid nucleus of players and Andy Reid, in spite of his well-documented faults, seems to always have his teams in playoff contention.
Sunday, Sept. 10
Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Redskins
Is it the battle for third place in the NFC East or will this game be the beginning of a real playoff run for one of these teams. Both finished around .500 last season and the Eagles have put an entirely new selection of weapons on the table for Carson Wentz. Will Kirk Cousins even be the Redskins’ quarterback in this game? The potential trade rumors have picked up steam with the draft approaching.
🏈🏈🏈 FOOTBALL! 🏈🏈🏈
The 2017 #NFLSchedule is finally here: https://t.co/OWjrDQ9DFM pic.twitter.com/B05BWBqq4z
— NFL (@NFL) April 21, 2017
Oakland Raiders at Tennessee Titans
Derek Carr gets his first, full-game action with his offense since breaking his leg last December. The Titans, with any other head coach, would be a playoff contender themselves this season. Can their sheer talent be enough to overcome Mike Mularkey’s failings as a head coach? This game will give us a good idea.
#Raiders schedule: 2017 NFL opponents pic.twitter.com/7fKE2Svftz
— Raiders Wire (@TheRaidersWire) April 21, 2017
Atlanta Falcons at Chicago Bears
How hung over are the Falcons going to be after the worst Super Bowl collapse in all of history? Any type of let down, even a close game against a Bears team in a complete rebuild mode will portend to a long, and losing season for Atlanta.
Indianapolis Colts at Los Angeles Rams
Sean McVay gets his first real chance to show off his improvements (which should be vast) to the Rams offense. On the defensive side, Wade Phillips gets to unleash his crew against a high-powered offense run by Andrew Luck, who is healthy really for the first time in a calendar year.
Inside the Call 📞: How the #Rams found out about the 2017 @NFL schedule pic.twitter.com/JQSwixE36I
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) April 21, 2017
Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers
If the Seahawks have to play at Green Bay, this is the time to do it long before the tundra gets officially frozen. Not only is this a potential playoff preview, there’s no real reason it couldn’t possibly be an NFC Championship preview.
New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys
The Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott show begin their sophomore year as does New York Giants head coach Ben McAdoo. Eli Manning is in the waning years of his career and if another Super Bowl is in his future, it has to happen soon. The Giants were the only team that beat the Cowboys in the regular season last year, so getting a win over New York this early would be a great way to begin 2017 for Dallas.
Notable #Cowboys 2017 Schedule:
5 Primetime Games
7 games vs 2016 Playoff Teams
Tied 10th Toughest S.O.S.
10 games vs +.500 2016 teams— 𝙼𝚊𝚝𝚝 𝚃𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚝𝚘𝚗 (@MattThorntonNFL) April 21, 2017
Monday, Sept. 11
New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings
The first Monday night game will show how much improvement each of these teams have made in one offseason. The Saints’ Achilles heel was their defense, while Minnesota’s offensive line was a sieve all last season.
Los Angeles Chargers at Denver Broncos
When Tony Romo took himself off the market, the Denver Broncos had to go to Plan B, which is pretty much the guys they brought to the table last year. The hope has to be that Paxton Lynch beats out Trevor Siemian in the preseason and makes his regular season debut here. The Chargers are in the same position as the Giants. If they have a Super Bowl title on the horizon with Phillip Rivers, the time to grab it is now. Is this the coaching crew that can make it happen? A win over Denver is a good start.
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