NFL Schedule 2017 release date: When is announcement?
By John Buhler
![Jan 15, 2017; Arlington, TX, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) runs with the ball against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Divisional playoff game at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports Jan 15, 2017; Arlington, TX, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) runs with the ball against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Divisional playoff game at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/cbe311ef4f75fd8386ba679117f396706caf49e4062df1260d6220c6cf145899.jpg)
The 2017 NFL schedule will be released sometime very soon. Do we even know when that glorious April afternoon is coming? Here’s when it’s all going down.
The NFL season will be here before you know it. The NFL Draft is coming up at the end of the month in Philadelphia from Thursday, April 27 through Saturday, April 29. There is one other big thing happening in the NFL this April: the release date of the 2017 NFL schedule.
We’ve known for a while the 16 teams that all 32 NFL teams will end up playing this fall, but we have had no clue about what the order of those 256 games might be. It could anything, but probably not a boat.
This year, the 2017 NFL schedule will be released on Thursday, April 20 in primetime on NFL Network. Every team will have at least one primetime game this fall, as everybody is playing on Thursday Night Football at some point. The really good teams like the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers may end up under the lights as many as five times this fall.
What we can expect is a Super Bowl LI rematch to be on the slate between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots. They will play in Foxborough. The season opener is likely to see the defending-champion Patriots host the Kansas City Chiefs, in what could be an AFC Championship Game preview.
must read: 30 Best NFL Defenders of All-Time
With the way of the intra-conference rotation, the Easts will play the Wests and the Norths with play the Souths in their respective conferences. It’s a little different in the inter-confernce rotation. The AFC East draws the NFC South, the AFC North plays the NFC North, the AFC South gets the NFC West and the AFC West claims the NFC East.