The 2016 NFL schedule is complete, and now fans just wait for it to be released to the general public.
It’s the moment every April where fans of the NFL wait with their planners opened and ready and their travel agents on speed dial. The annual release of the regular season schedule has become one of the most important days of the sports year as we see who will be playing when and where.
We’re still five months away from the actual opening kickoff of the 2016 NFL regular season, but we should know in the next week when each game will take place. The NFL announced that the 256 game schedule for the regular season has been completed:
'16 #NFL regular season sked is done. stay tuned for announcement on when it'll be announced pic.twitter.com/46jpmEwuJc
— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) April 13, 2016
Update: (7:00 p.m.) The NFL schedule will be released Thursday at 8p.m. ET on NFL Network.
It had previously been announced that the schedule would be released the week of April 18th, which is next Monday. Last season, it was released on April 21st and traditionally is announced a week before the NFL Draft takes place, which starts this year on April 28th.
So far, four of the games in the regular season have already been announced. Three games will take place in London, England again in 2016 (Jacksonville Jaguars-Indianapolis Colts on October 2nd, Los Angeles Rams-New York Giants on October 23rd and Cincinnati Bengals-Washington Redskins on October 30th). In addition, the Oakland Raiders and Houston Texans will meet in Mexico City on Monday, November 21st.
The season will open on September 8th as the Denver Broncos will continue the tradition of the Super Bowl champion being the first team to play each year. That game will be televised by NBC with the likely opponent being the New England Patriots, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts or even a Super Bowl rematch with the Carolina Panthers.
The first Monday Night Football game of the season will likely be in Los Angeles, as the NFL returns to the city following a 21-year hiatus with the Rams coming back home. The Rams’ home schedule includes the Panthers, the Seattle Seahawks, Arizona Cardinals and the Miami Dolphins.
For more NFL news, check out our NFL hub page.