Philadelphia Eagles' NFL schedule 2024: Updates, analysis ahead of release
The annual release of the NFL schedule has become like New Year's Day, when fans can plan out their road trips to watch the Philadelphia Eagles play.
Perhaps many have already looked into plans for the Eagles' season opener against the Green Bay Packers in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Sept. 6.
The NFL announced in February that the Eagles will be the host team for the first-ever NFL game in South America. The remaining 16 games for the Eagles will be announced with the rest of the NFL schedule on May 15 at 8 p.m.
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The Eagles, like every NFL team, know all of their opponents in 2024. They just don't know the order, other than the opener against the Packers. But the Eagles, as a playoff contender, should also have at least a few prime-time games. The maximum is six, leaving the Eagles with potentially five more after the Brazil game.
Here's what you need to know about the Eagles' 2024 schedule ahead of the official release:
When will the Eagles' 2024 schedule be released?
The NFL announced this week that the full 2024 schedule will be released at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 15.
Who do the Eagles play at home in 2024?
The Eagles will play their usual three NFC East rivals — the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders. The divisional rotations have them playing against the NFC South and AFC North. From the NFC South, the Eagles will get home games against the Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons. The AFC North teams coming to the Linc will be the cross-state foe Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns.
The Eagles also have home games against last season's second-place finishers from the AFC South, the Jacksonville Jaguars, and NFC North, the Green Bay Packers. The game against the Packers is an Eagles home game in Brazil.
Who do the Eagles play on the road in 2024?
The Eagles make their usual road trips to divisional rivals Giants, Cowboys and Commanders. The NFC South road opponents are a playoff rematch against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who eliminated the Birds 32-9 in the wild-card round in January, and the New Orleans Saints. The AFC North road trips will take them to Baltimore to face Lamar Jackson and the Ravens, and to Cincinnati to face Joe Burrow and the Bengals.
The Eagles have a road game against the second-place finisher from the NFC West, the Los Angeles Rams. It's the second straight season the Eagles are facing the Rams on the road.
Could the Eagles play on Thanksgiving, Black Friday or Christmas in 2024?
The NFL announced that it will have two games scheduled for Christmas Day, which falls on a Wednesday, this year. Those will be the first-ever games scheduled on a Wednesday. The teams playing that day will also play the previous Saturday. That allows for the same amount of rest as teams playing on a Thursday night following a Sunday game.
The Eagles could play on Christmas even though they were one of the six teams (three games) playing on Christmas last year. They beat the Giants 33-25. There's no rule that would prevent a team from playing on Christmas Day two years in a row.
Thanksgiving is also a possibility because the Eagles play a road game in Dallas, an annual host for a Thanksgiving game. The Eagles do not play the other traditional Thanksgiving host, the Detroit Lions. The Eagles have not played on Thanksgiving Day since 2015 when they played the Lions. The year before, the Eagles played the Cowboys on the holiday.
There's also a prime-time game scheduled for Thanksgiving night. That could feature any two teams. So perhaps the Eagles are due for a Turkey Day game this year?
There's also the possibility of the second annual Black Friday game, which will be on Nov. 29. A year ago, that Amazon Prime exclusive streaming game featured the Dolphins and the New York Jets.
What are the NFL's rules on flex scheduling?
Last year was the first year in which Sunday games could be flexed to Monday night. The Eagles fell victim to this when their Dec. 17 game in Seattle was flexed to Monday night, Dec. 18. That created a travel nightmare for fans who had already purchased plane tickets and booked hotel rooms.
The NFL needs only 12 days advance notice to make that switch.
The NFL is also allowing games to get flexed to Thursday night. But the NFL is requiring 28 days' notice for this. There were no games flexed to a Thursday last season.
Sunday Night Football: Week 5-10, up to twice permitted; Weeks 11-17, at the league's discretion
Monday Night Football: Weeks 12-17, at the league's discretion
Thursday Night Football: Week 13-17, up to twice permitted
Sunday afternoon: Can be shifted between 1 p.m., 4:05 p.m., or 4:25 p.m., as well as can be moved to Sunday night, Monday night, or Thursday night
Week 18 games: All games dates/times will be determined at the conclusion of Week 17
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on X @Mfranknfl.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Eagles 2024 NFL schedule tracker: Updates on opponents, games
