The National Football League officially released the times and dates for the 2020 regular season schedule along with preseason opponents for all 32 clubs last Thursday night.
The schedule was fully released on NFL Network but not before each team was allowed to release their own schedule 30 minutes early.
For Chiefs Kingdom, the loudest fans in the league learned that their defending Super Bowl champs will play in five primetime games.
After having some time to look over the Chiefs’ slate of games for the 2020 season, here are the five that I think will be the most anticipated.
Week 1: Texans @ Chiefs on Thursday, September 10th at 7:20 p.m.
The start to 2020 NFL regular season will officially kick-off with the rematch from last season’s AFC divisional round between the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs.
The Thursday night season opener will be the first time Houston returns to Arrowhead Stadium since they blew a 24-0 lead late in the first half to inevitably lose as Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense score seven consecutive touchdowns to advance to the AFC Championship following a 51-31 victory.
However, the last time Patrick Mahomes and DeShaun Watson squared off in the regular season, it was Watson that got the last laugh after falling behind 17-3 to pull off the 31-24 comeback and give Kansas City their second loss of the 2019 season.
That being said, Houston will undoubtedly be back with a vengeance as they look to get off to a fast start for their 2020 campaign and gain a one-game advantage over the Chiefs in the postseason standings.
Again, with Patrick Mahomes and DeShaun Watson forever connected as part of the 2017 QB draft class, this is sure to be a good one.
Other than that, this matchup will be most anticipated because as the first game of the Chiefs season, it’ll be the first to allow fans to hopefully put the COVID-19 pandemic behind them and watch their beloved Chiefs begin their ‘Run it Back’ tour to Super Bowl 55.
Week 3: Chiefs @ Ravens on Monday, September 28th at 7:15 p.m.
Kansas City and Baltimore have quickly emerged as the next upcoming rivalry within the AFC for good reason and will be broadcasted on ESPN for Monday Night Football.
The Chiefs and Ravens are easily the top two teams of the American Football Conference and are already heavy favorites, according to some, to meet in the next AFC Championship Game for the Super Bowl.
Ultimately, this match will be about the QBs and Lamar Jackson in particular. So far, Jackson followed in Mahomes’ footprints. For instance, after Mahomes won the league MVP in 2018, Jackson followed suit and did the same the following season and strangely enough, after Mahomes made the cover for Madden 20, Jackson has been rumored to be the cover man for Madden 21.
Likewise, Jackson will look to not only finally knock off the Chiefs, but also enter the same elite tier as Mahomes by winning a ring of his own.
However, Jackson and the Ravens are 0-2 thus far against the Chiefs but this time around will have the pleasure of playing in front of the Baltimore crowd at M&T Bank Stadium.
There, Lamar will look to finally collect that elusive victory over Kansas City or succumb to Mahomes and company leaving Baltimore with a third consecutive victory over the Ravens.
Week 11: Chiefs @ Raiders on Monday, November 22 at 7:20 p.m.
The historic rivalry between the Chiefs and Raiders turns a whole new page in Week 11 as Kansas City heads to Vegas for the first time and will be televised in primetime on Sunday Night Football. This game will also be highly anticipated amongst Chiefs fans, who plan to attend and make the Raiders’ Allegiant Stadium as red as possible.
Kansas City has won 27 of their last 29 games against AFC West opponents and is 12-2 against the Raiders since 2013. However, Vegas has improved their roster over the off-season, adding a few offensive weapons to help them try and keep up with the Chiefs on the scoreboard including former Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten and rookie wide receiver Henry Ruggs, who was the fastest receiver in this year’s draft class, to go along with running back Josh Jacobs and tight end Darren Waller.
That being said, the Chiefs have only lost to the Raiders twice while under Head Coach Andy Reid, both on the road, and with Tom Brady’s Bucs coming up the following week, Kansas City will need to be at the top of their game to avoid a potential trap game.
Nonetheless, both games against the Raiders should be anticipated because who doesn’t love watching the Chiefs put on a slugfest on their most hated rival? Other than Raider fans of course.
Week 12: Chiefs @ Bucs on Sunday, November 29th at 3:35 p.m.
Regarded as a plausible preview for Super Bowl 55, Chiefs and Bucs in Week 12 will be a highly anticipated matchup that features Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs high-flying offense heading down to Tampa to face former New England QB Tom Brady and the new-look Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
New uniforms aside, there’s plenty of confidence brewing in Tampa as the Buccaneers build a roster that looks poised to make some noise for the first time in a while.
Adding Brady to an offense that’ll include wide receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Breshad Perriman, and tight ends Cameron Brate, O.J. Howard and former Patriot Rob Gronkowski combined with a fierce up and coming defense, no doubt the Bucs are going to be one of Kansas City’s tougher matchups late in the season.
That being said, the next edition of Brady vs Mahomes is sure to feature another potential offensive battle and it’ll be interesting to see how both defenses matchup against either team’s potent offensive attacks.
Week 15: Chiefs @ Saints on Sunday, December 20th at 3:25 p.m.
This is another matchup that will consist of two power-house teams that mirror one another very well. This will also be another duel of potent offensive attacks as Pat Mahomes, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce take on Drew Brees, Mike Williams, and Alvin Kamara for the first time.
The Chiefs and Saints came close to playing one another as a potential matchup for Super Bowl 53 during the 2018 NFL postseason before both teams lost their respective conference championship games.
Since then, many fans have been waiting patiently for this meeting and will finally get to see two of the league’s top teams duke it out in what will hopefully be one of the most epic shootouts in recent memory.
The stakes for this matchup may also build up with ensuing playoff scenarios late in the season as multiple teams jock for positioning to make the postseason tournament.
Not to mention, this could also be a potential Super Bowl preview.
