Kansas City Chiefs to open 2023 NFL season against Detroit Lions; Aaron Rodgers' New York Jets to host Buffalo Bills in Monday Night Football opener; San Francisco 49ers at the Seattle Seahawks part of Thanksgiving triple-bill; Chiefs set for Christmas Day clash against Las Vegas Raiders
Friday 12 May 2023 08:02, UK
The Kansas City Chiefs will begin the defence of their Super Bowl crown by kicking off the 2023 NFL season against the Detroit Lions.
Patrick Mahomes will lead the Chiefs out at Arrowhead on Thursday, September 7, against a Lions side touted as one of this year's potential surprise packages having won eight of their final 10 games during the 2022 campaign.
Aaron Rodgers will begin life with the New York Jets by facing Josh Allen and their AFC East-rivals the Buffalo Bills in the first Monday Night Football of the season, as the full 2023 schedule was released on Thursday.
Rodgers moved on from the Green Bay Packers after 18 years this offseason as the four-time MVP quarterback was traded to the Jets in a deal that saw his former team receive first, second and sixth-round selections at the 2023 draft as well as a conditional second-round selection in 2024.
Rodgers' Jets debut on Monday night represents a busy 24 hours in New York on opening week, with MetLife Stadium also playing host to the New York Giants' NFC East divisional matchup with the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football in the other prime-time clash reserved for opening week.
Elsewhere on the Week One slate, Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young, the No 1 pick from this year's draft, will begin his NFL career with a visit to the Atlanta Falcons, while the second overall pick, CJ Stroud and his Houston Texans travel to the Baltimore Ravens to do battle with their star QB Lamar Jackson, fresh from signing a big-money extension with the team.
The Packers will experience life without Rodgers for the first time as the Jordan Love era opens with a visit to the Chicago Bears to face their division rivals and the very team their former QB said he "owned", boasting a 24-5 career record versus the team.
Former Super Bowl-winning coach with the New Orleans Saints, Sean Payton, begins his tenure with the Denver Broncos with a divisional meeting with the Las Vegas Raiders, while two much-fancied AFC contenders, the Los Angeles Chargers and Miami Dolphins, and their high-powered offenses, are set to slug it out at SoFi Stadium in LA.
Also, the New England Patriots will honour the seven-time Super Bowl winner and former Patriot great Tom Brady in the home opener against the team that beat them in Super Bowl LII, and last year's runners-up, the Philadelphia Eagles, in one of the marquee matchups of Week One.
Looking further down the schedule, the Thanksgiving Day triple-header features three huge divisional matchups, with the Lions hosting the Packers and the Cowboys welcoming the Washington Commanders for the traditional holiday football fare, while the San Francisco 49ers round off the entertainment with a visit to their NFC West foes the Seattle Seahawks.
The 49ers will also take centre stage on Christmas Day, concluding that night's triple bill of NFL action too with a mouth-watering matchup with the Baltimore Ravens. Earlier that day, the holidays kick off with the defending-champion Chiefs hosting the Raiders, now led by former 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo following the offseason departure of Derek Carr, while the Eagles will take on the Giants sandwiched in between.
Elsewhere the Miami Dolphins are scheduled to take on Rodgers' Jets on November 24 in the first ever Black Friday game, while the Cincinnati Bengals are on the road against the Chiefs on New Year's Eve.
The 2023 International schedule was released on Wednesday, with a record five European games set to be played across London and Frankfurt.
Lamar Jackson's Baltimore Ravens will face the Tennessee Titans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in October, while the Jacksonville Jaguars are set to make NFL history by playing back-to-back regular season games in the UK against the Atlanta Falcons and Bills.
The Jaguars will open the 2023 International Games slate by hosting their 10th regular season matchup in London against the visiting Falcons on October 1 at Wembley Stadium, before taking on the Bills at Tottenham on October 8 the following week as the first team to feature in two regular season games outside of the United States.
A newly-extended Jackson will then lead out Baltimore against the Titans at Spurs on October 15 in Week Six in their first visit back since losing 44-7 to the Jaguars in 2017.
The Dolphins are scheduled to meet the Chiefs at the Frankfurt Stadium in Germany on November 5, with the same venue also playing stage to the Indianapolis Colts against the New England Patriots on November 12.
