The Detroit Lions seemed to be the perfect opponent to face the Philadelphia Eagles in the opening game of the 2025 season. Instead, the Eagles will face the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1 instead, once again delaying the clash between the NFC’s two juggernauts.
The Lions will have to travel to face the Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field at some point during the regular season, but it’s not clear exactly when the game will take place. The Lions already know which teams they will face during the 2025 season, but the order won’t be revealed until the NFL releases the full 2025 schedule on Wednesday, May 14.
Since Week 1 is no longer a possibility, the Lions’ road game against Philadelphia is unlikely to be scheduled early in the season. The NFL may save that matchup for December since it will likely carry significant playoff seeding implications.
NFC clash between Lions and Eagles likely to be later in the season
While last year’s AFC playoffs were fairly unpredictable, the NFC appeared to be a two-team race between Detroit and Philadelphia. Although the Eagles were dominant during their path to a Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl LIX, the Lions appeared to be the NFL’s best team through a majority of the 2024 season.
Detroit had the league’s best scoring offense and seventh-best scoring defense last season, which carried them to a 15-2 record and a league-high average point differential of 11.6. The Eagles finished with a point differential of 10.9, second-highest in the NFL.
The Lions finished as the NFC’s No. 1 seed, but they never made it to their highly anticipated NFC title bout against Philadelphia. Detroit’s injury-riddled roster fell short in a heartbreaking divisional-round loss against the Washington Commanders, paving the way for the Eagles to soar to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.
Detroit’s path to its first Lombardi Trophy won’t get any easier this season. The Lions are projected to have the third-toughest schedule in 2025, ahead of only the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants, per Warren Sharp. Of the 10 teams with the toughest schedules in 2024, only two — the Lions and the Los Angeles Rams — made the playoffs. On the other hand, six of the 10 teams with the easiest schedules made it to the postseason.
Two years ago, the Lions were selected to face the Kansas City Chiefs in the season opener. The Chiefs were expected to dominate their opponent in a lopsided affair, but the Lions managed to spoil the defending Super Bowl champions’ banner night with a narrow 21-20 victory.