The Atlanta Falcons have several marketable stars, but so far winning hasn't followed. And yet, despite having not been in the NFC playoffs since 2017, the Dirty Birds are reportedly going to play in four primetime games this season. This does not include their international "road" game vs. the Indianapolis Colts over in Berlin.
Zack Klein of WSB-TV reported on Wednesday morning that the NFL will be scheduling the Falcons in four standalone, primetime games: Atlanta will host the Buffalo Bills and the Los Angeles Rams for Monday Night Football this season, while facing the Minnesota Vikings and the San Francisco 49ers on the road for Sunday Night Football as well. Those two Sunday night games could be flexed out, of course, but right now that's a lot of eyeballs that will be on the Falcons.
What this suggests is the NFL believes in Michael Penix Jr.'s talent as a potential franchise quarterback, as well as the ascending nature of Raheem Morris' team. They are entering their second season working together, but the first where Penix Jr. will enter this season as the undisputed starting quarterback. Of course, the Falcons have a bad tendency to shrink in big spots, especially in primetime, and there are still plenty of question marks about this team in 2025.
To be frank, the NFL wants to see the Falcons succeed because Atlanta is a major media market.
NFL seems to believe in the Atlanta Falcons this year.
— Zach Klein (@ZachKleinWSB) May 14, 2025
league sources tell me Falcons will have 2 MNF games .. Buffalo Bills and LA Rams.. both at home
AND 2 SNF games… Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers.. both on road pic.twitter.com/oh3ByoGUcb
What do we know about the Falcons' 2025 NFL season schedule that leads us to believe they will win?
Who are the Atlanta Falcons playing ahead of NFL schedule release?
Looking at the Falcons' opponents for the 2025 NFL season, a handful of things stand out. The entire NFC may be playing nine road games this year, but one will be of the international variety for the Dirty Birds. The date vs. Indianapolis in Germany will almost certainly be played in front of a neutral vibes crowd. Atlanta has a favorable schedule because of the division in plays in more than anything else.
In addition to having to play their three division rivals twice, Atlanta will face the AFC East and the NFC West in its entirety as part of this year's divisional rotation. Their three other competitive balance games will be against Indianapolis, Minnesota and Washington, all of which finished in second place in their respective divisions last year.
As I try to unpack this a bit more, the road dates at Minnesota and San Francisco are considerably trickier now. I would argue that the home games vs. Buffalo and Los Angeles are not easy either. To put it bluntly, I would be thrilled if the Falcons went 2-2 in those four combined primetime games. Buffalo feels like the most challenging of the four, but it is also one of the two games to be played in Atlanta.
Overall, this feels like the last time to get on the Falcons' hype train. It is about to leave the station, with or without the Dirty Birds. If this team takes flight like the NFL clearly thinks it will, there will be more Falcons fans than Atlanta will know what to do with. Should the team struggle to get back to relevancy, it might be hard for a lifelong fan of this team like myself to get overly excited about them.
The stage has been set, but the Falcons will have to take their broken wings and learn to fly again.