The 2024 NFL regular season doesn't begin until September, but fans can now start to make their plans for the fall because the full schedule for all 32 teams was released Wednesday night.
The New England Patriots will open the season at the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, Sept. 8. The home opener is Week 2 versus the Seattle Seahawks at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots have one primetime game on the schedule right now. It's a Thursday Night Football matchup with the rival New York Jets in Week 3. New England doesn't have any games on NBC's Sunday Night Football or ESPN's Monday Night Football, although there's always the possibility to be flexed into one of those slots.
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Three of the Patriots' first four games are on the road. The two West Coast games -- at 49ers and Cardinals -- are not played in back-to-back weeks, which means they'll have to travel across the country for both.
One intriguing matchup is Week 10 at the Chicago Bears. It could be a showdown between two of the top three picks in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Bears selected USC quarterback Caleb Williams with the No. 1 pick, while the Patriots selected UNC quarterback Drake Maye at No. 3 overall. Williams almost certainly will be starting at that point, but it remains to be seen whether Maye will be doing the same in New England.
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In addition to playing each of their AFC East division rivals twice, the Patriots also will play the AFC South and NFC West this season. The Patriots have eight home games and nine road games.
The Patriots' bye isn't until Week 14, so they won't get a break until early December.
New England also will play in its fifth international game in team history. The franchise will head to London to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium in Week 7. It counts as one of the Patriots' nine road games. The Patriots are 3-1 all time in international games. The only loss was to the Indianapolis Colts in Germany last season.
Here's the complete Patriots schedule for the 2024 regular season.