The 2014 NFL schedule was released minutes ago. It’s what we have all been looking forward to for a few weeks now, especially with the NFL draft being pushed back a couple weeks. What are the best games on the slate? Who will the Seattle Seahawks open up with at home on Thursday Night Football? When will Seattle travel to the 49ers new digs in Santa Clara? Let’s check this out below, as we give you our 10-best games on the 2014 NFL schedule.
1. Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers (Week 13, Thanksgiving Night: November 27th at 8:30 PM ET on NBC)
Why not close out Thanksgiving with this beauty? This game has everything you want. Two of the best teams in the NFL going up against one another at a brand-new stadium in Santa Clara with bragging rights on the line. Add into account how the NFC Championship game ended this past January and the fact that Seattle and San Francisco hate one another (not a generic term, they really do) and you have the makings for one hell of a game.
Just think about it. Not only are bragging rights on the line here. The division and home-field advantage in the playoffs could very well be decided in the two games that Seattle and San Francisco play against one another. For the Seahawks part, wouldn’t they just love to beat the 49ers in the first game between the two teams in San Francisco’s new stadium?
2. Denver Broncos at Seattle Seahawks (Week 3: September 21st at 4:25 ET on CBS)
Noah K. Murray, USA Today
Oh man, the Broncos must be looking at some sort of revenge here after losing 43-8 in the Super Bowl just a couple short months ago. The problem with revenge in this case is that it would have to take place at the not-so-friendly confines of CenturyLink in the Pacific Northwest. How in the world will the Broncos be able to compete there when they were absolutely destroyed at a neutral site? Yeah, I don’t like how this will likely play out for the road team.
In any event, it’s a rematch of the Super Bowl between two teams that will be contending for a conference title in 2014. Did the Broncos do enough to narrow the gap between themselves and the Seahawks as well as the rest of the NFC? We shall see.
3. Kansas City Chiefs at San Francisco 49ers (Week 5: October 5th, at 4:25 ET on FOX)
Alex Smith returning home to face the team that traded him away just a year after he led them to the NFC championship game. Smith had an up-and-down experience in San Francisco, but really turned it around under the guide of head coach Jim Harbaugh. Now that he will be returning home to face Harbaugh and Colin Kaepernick, who was tasked with eventually replacing him, Smith definitely has revenge on his mind.
It will be interesting to see how fans in Santa Clara react to Smith when he takes the field. They were extremely tough on the quarterback after he was selected No. 1 overall back in the 2005 NFL draft. After initial struggles, Smith’s success was real towards the end of his 49ers career. Somehow I don’t envision a repeat of the “we want Carr” chants in this one.
4. Denver Broncos at New England Patriots (Week 3: September 21st at 1:25 ET on CBS)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RH5y1vclOSY
Okay, okay. This MIGHT be the last game between two future Hall of Famers in Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. Sure we said that prior to each of their last five meetings. But this COULD be it. Okay, probably not. Anyway, it’s hard to beat a game that pits Brady and Manning, no matter when it’s played in the season. For Brady, it’s not about revenge. Beating the Broncos at home during the regular season doesn’t fix the fact that New England lost on the road in Denver in the AFC Championship game.
5. Washington Redskins at Philadelphia Eagles (Week 3: September 21st at 1:00 PM ET on FOX)
“The DeSean Jackson Bowl.” Okay, that should never be a thing. This game could, however, help decide the outcome of the NFC East. Philadelphia is clearly the class of the division and the Redskins have improved a great deal in the offseason, mainly due to the addition of Jackson himself. We also want to find out exactly how Jackson will be received in Philadelphia, the city known mostly for its passionate hate of everything from Santa Clause to Mike Schmidt.
6. Green Bay Packers at Seattle Seahawks (Week 1: September 4th at 8:30 PM ET on NBC)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vA5iVLBQ3V4
Where is Golden Tate when you need him? Maybe the NFL should get replacement refs to work this one game. After all, the last game between these two teams in Seattle went so swimmingly. While the Seahawks were heads and shoulders better than Green Bay last season, the return of Aaron Rodgers to what is hopefully going to be a full season immediately makes the Packers contenders for the conference crown. Going into Seattle could be a gauge of where they’re at as a team opening up the NFL schedule.
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Chicago Bears (Week 12: November 23rd at 1:00 PM ET on FOX)
Mike Carter, USA Today: Lovie returns to Chicago
Lovie returning to the Windy City for the first time since he was fired following a 10-6 campaign in 2012. He does so with what promises to be a completely new team from a scheme standpoint in Tampa Bay. Making this game more important is the fact that each of these teams will enter the 2014 season with playoff expectations, but aren’t considered favorites to win their respective divisions. Could a playoff spot be on the line here.
8. Carolina Panthers at New Orleans Saints (Week 14: December 7th at 1:00 PM ET on FOX)
Speaking of playoffs, despite Carolina’s losses at wide receiver this offseason, it is likely going to be one of the favorites to come out of the NFC South. Obviously the Saints, who rebounded from a down 2012 campaign to earn a playoff spot last year, will have something to say about this. While the Panthers might have taken a step back, New Orleans has added some solid talent on the defensive side of the ball. Has the gap narrowed enough? Are the Saints legitimately better than the Panthers? We should find out a lot here.
9. New England Patriots at Green Bay Packers (Week 13: November 30th at 4:25 ET on CBS)
Brady vs Aaron Rodgers. Two of the best quarterbacks of our time going up against one another in a rare meeting. Green Bay and New England meet only once every four years. In reality, this is likely the first/last time Brady will take on Rodgers at Lambeau Field. Both teams are serious Super Bowl contenders and this could be a statement game for each of them.
10. San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks (Week 15: December 14th, at 4:25 ET on FOX)
If we are going to indicate that the Seahawks playing in Santa Clara is the No. 1 game on the slate, well we have to make sure those two playing in the Pacific Northwest is on the list as well. Colin Kaepernick is 0-3 with two touchdowns and six interceptions in three career starts in Seattle. His three late-game turnovers in the NFC Championship game this past January doomed San Francisco’s chances of earning a second straight Super Bowl appearance and helped propel the Seahawks to their first Lombardi Trophy in team history. Can Kaepernick right his wrong in what will be yet another highly dramatic matchup between the two bitter divisin rivals?
Other Notables
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIxtxntG1sI
New England Patriots at New York Jets (Week 16: December 21st at 1:00 PM ET on CBS)
Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers (Week 10: November 9th at 8:30 PM ET on NBC)
Indianapolis Colts at Denver Broncos (Week 1: September 7th at 8:30 PM ET on NBC)
San Francsico 49ers at Oakland Raiders (Week 14: December 7th at 4:25 ET on FOX)
Photo: Kyle Terada, USA Today