Seahawks have their 2017 schedule; league will announce it, all games Thursday on national TV
The NFL reveals its 2017 game schedule at 5 p.m. today. In a prime-time television special on its network.
Only the NFL can turn the release of dates and time for games -- with teams having known their opponents since the end of last regular season -- into a hyped TV event.
The league had as of Thursday morning started informing the Seahawks and the 31 other teams their schedules, which the NFL hammered out with a complex computer system and heavy consultation with its TV partners. The league recently put out an extensive explanation of how the process works -- rarely to teams’ approvals.
Our schedule makers now telling clubs their '17 schedule. For 98th straight year, not one club has said they got the perfect sked pic.twitter.com/jiV0SXgBXL
— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) April 20, 2017
The Seahawks’ foes in 2017, based on how teams finished in 2016 and on the league’s rotation of inter- and intraconference games between divisions:
HOME: Philadelphia, Washington, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Houston, Los Angeles Rams, Arizona, San Francisco.
AWAY: at Dallas, New York Giants, Green Bay, Jacksonville, Tennessee, Los Angeles Rams, Arizona, San Francisco.
That’s five teams that made the playoffs last season: the Falcons, Texans, Cowboys, Giants and Packers. Seattle is playing at Green Bay for the 45th consecutive season. At least it seems that way.
Leaks on the league’s 2017 schedule began floating out Thursday morning. The Washington Post and others cited league sources saying Washington will host its NFC East-rival Giants on Thanksgiving night. That’s in addition to the NFL’s traditional Thanksgiving day games at Detroit and at Dallas. So the Seahawks have a chance to be playing on Thanksgiving at the Cowboys, as they did in 2008.
Mike Klis of 9News in Denver reported the Broncos are hosting the Los Angeles Chargers in week one. That means two of the opening week’s primetime games are reportedly set. The Boston Globe had already reported the Super Bowl-champion New England Patriots host the Kansas City Chiefs to kick off the NFL season on Thursday night that first game week in September.
League Network source: Broncos to open 2017 season at home vs LA Chargers on Monday night. #9sports
— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) April 20, 2017
Seattle’s preseason schedule came out last week. The Seahawks will begin the exhibition season at the Chargers in their new, temporary home in a soccer stadium in Carson, California, in mid-August. Seattle then hosts Minnesota and Kansas City before ending the preseason for the 12th consecutive year against the Raiders, this time in Oakland.
This story was originally published April 20, 2017 at 9:22 PM with the headline "Seahawks have their 2017 schedule; league will announce it, all games Thursday on national TV."