New England Patriots’ 2024 NFL Schedule: Release date, opponents, biggest games, and predictions

The New England Patriots' offseason is in full swing now that the NFL Draft and free agency are out of the way. From this point on, it's all about making the 90-man roster as good as it can be via OTAs, workouts, and training camp.

One key offseason aspect is hurling itself towards us over the coming weeks, as well, and that's the NFL's schedule release. We already know the Patriots' 2024 opponents, but when and where they play the opposition is far more valuable then simply knowing who they play.

So, let's not waste any more time and go over everything we currently know about the Patriots' 2024 schedule, and more.

Patriots' Schedule Release Date

The NFL teased during the draft that schedules will be released in May, although it didn't give us an exact date. Based off the last couple of years, however, it should come out around the middle of May, as it was released on May 12 in 2022 and May 11 in 2023.

Once that comes out, we will update this with the Patriots' exact schedule.

Home and Away Opponents

Games played at Gillette Stadium: Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Seattle Seahawks, Los Angeles Chargers

Away Games: Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, San Francisco 49ers, Tennessee Titans, Cincinnati Bengals, Chicago Bears

Biggest Games on the Patriots' 2024 Schedule

Every divisional game: The AFC East is always a tough division, and 2024 will be no exception. While it has been the Dolphins and Bills who have been at the top the past few years, the New York Jets with Aaron Rodgers leading the way will certainly be in the mix. So every divisional game will be challenging, but very important. 

Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: While he will most likely not be starting for the Jaguars, this will be the Patriots first time seeing Mac Jones since the trade. And that will be a big storyline. Plus, there is the possibility this could be in London. 

Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts: Last year's matchup against the Colts in Germany was embarrassing for both sides. The Patriots managed to get only six points on the board, while Indianapolis got 10. So it's redemption time for both sides.  

Predicting Primetime Matchups and Week 1/Week 18 opponents

Which games will be primetime viewing?

Based on all the changes the New England Patriots have gone through this offseason, there are a lot of questions about this team. And that means there will be a lot of eyes on them as they navigate the post-Bill Belichick era. So with that, the Patriots will most likely get two to three primetime matchups next season. 

One of them will almost certainly be the away matchup against the Chicago Bears since it could be Drake Maye vs. Caleb Williams. 

Because of all the drama with Mac Jones, the away game against the Jacksonville Jaguars is another possibility. 

As for a home game in primetime, with the possibility of Maye being in the pocket, a matchup between the rookie and C.J. Stroud could be epic. 

Who are the Week 1 and Week 18 opponents?

The Patriots opening the season against the Tennessee Titans, who also have a new head coach, would make for an exciting start to the season. As for the final game of the season, divisional rivals are very popular so it could be the New York Jets or the Buffalo Bills. 

Strength of Schedule (based off Vegas win totals, not 2023 record)

Warren Sharp of Sharp Football Analysis does this cool thing every year where he ranks teams' strength of schedule based off Vegas' projected win totals for the upcoming season. He doesn't base it off the standard last-year's-record model and it makes a lot more sense, because of all the change teams go through during the offseason.

At the time of this publication, he hasn't updated it to reflect Vegas' updated, post-draft totals and I'll update this once the information becomes available. Regardless, Sharp has the Patriots' SOS as the second-hardest. Only the Steelers have a tougher schedule.