The 2025 NFL schedule has been released. The season will begin Sept. 4, when the Cowboys visit the Super Bowl-champion Eagles. The next night, the Chargers play the Chiefs in Brazil, beginning a record seven-game international slate, which includes the first NFL game in Ireland, three in England, and one each in Germany and Spain. The 2025 schedule also features three games on Thanksgiving, one on Black Friday and a Christmas Day tripleheader.
While a lot is bound to change from mid-May to kickoff at Lincoln Financial Field on Sept. 4, our experts broke down every team’s schedule, predicting final records and offering insight and analysis.
AFC East
Henry McKenna: The Bills are going to sit atop the AFC East comfortably, yet again. Given the division’s crop of quarterbacks and/or the lack of supporting cast, it’s extremely hard to imagine anyone unseating Josh Allen. The star QB, coach Sean McDermott and GM Brandon Beane have a strong understanding of one another. Maybe a Super Bowl has eluded the Bills, but they have won five straight divisional titles — and that run isn’t stopping in 2025. They’ll implement their additions (edge Joey Bosa, WR Joshua Palmer, CB Maxwell Hairston) to make up for their losses. And this core of returners, including their entire hulking offensive line, should stay dominant in the regular season. As for the postseason? Well, let’s get there when we get there.
Record Prediction: 12-5
Henry McKenna: The Jets had no shortage of talent last year, and I’m willing to bet the organization couldn’t get the most out of its players because of the profound dysfunction stemming from awkward power dynamics involving Aaron Rodgers, Robert Saleh and Joe Douglas. Every single one of those guys is gone, for better and for worse. (Mostly for better.) There’s a new era of coach Aaron Glenn, GM Darren Mougey and QB Justin Fields. I recently saw a Jets fan tweet that he wants the team to finish this season at either 5-12 or 12-5. In the playoffs. Or in the top 10 of the draft. But I’m sorry to say that I see it cutting right down the middle. No playoffs. Or a top-10 pick. And that’ll make for a tough decision for New York about what to do with Fields in 2026.
Record Prediction: 8-9
Henry McKenna: It won’t be the progress that Patriots fans want to see, given the massive spending in free agency and the analysts’ rave reviews for New England’s draft. But Patriots fans had it so dang good for so long that they don’t understand how long it can take to get out of the basement. Ask the Jaguars. Ask the Browns. They can’t get out. Ask the Lions. Ask the Texans. It seemed they’d never get out. Point is, Mike Vrabel is a good coach. Quarterback Drake Maye is a good prospect. The Patriots now have more talent than last year. That’s good for a few more wins than last year. But it does not a playoff contender make. Not in one year.
Record Prediction: 7-10
Henry McKenna: There’s plenty of brewing dysfunction in Miami. The Dolphins’ best player, Tyreek Hill, is both passively and aggressively working to get traded, which the team is probably happy to do, given his involvement in a domestic disturbance. But at risk of sounding callous, it’s also the lowest point of Hill’s career to put him on the trade market. And GM Chris Grier can’t afford to look hasty, because he’s probably on the hot seat this year. So is coach Mike McDaniel. And if Miami does trade Hill, the offense could continue its downward slide. Because even with Tua Tagovailoa in the lineup, the 2024 Dolphins didn’t look like the NFL’s fancy new toy. No, they looked like a solved Rubik’s Cube. For the 2025 Dolphins, there are too many points of concern — including those about Tua’s health — for me to get excited about this roster.
Record Prediction: 4-13
AFC North
Greg Auman: The Ravens could be a better team than last year and still finish with a worse record than the 12-5 they went in 2024. They face the entire NFC North, arguably the toughest division in the league, and their three games as a result of a first-place showing are the Chiefs, Rams and Texans — no easy draw there. They could be a top-10 team and still go just 4-2 in the division. The key is whether they can hold off Cincinnati with an improved defense and Pittsburgh (with Aaron Rodgers?) and avoid opening the playoffs on the road, as they have just one road playoff win in the past 10 years.
Record Prediction: 11-6
Ralph Vacchiano: First, how great is it that the NFL put the Steelers in New York against the Jets in Week 1? It’s like the league is baiting Aaron Rodgers to push off retirement to take out his frustrations on his old team. The Steelers better hope he takes the bait, because if he stays in the darkness, their season picture gets a lot dimmer. It’s bad enough that they’re in the AFC’s toughest division, but they also have to play the four teams from the powerful NFC North. And they lose a home game to play the Vikings in Dublin, Ireland. There are still a lot of softer spots on the schedule — games at New England and home against the Colts and Dolphins. Plus, they can always lean on their home-and-home against the Browns. But if Mason Rudolph is their quarterback all season, nothing will seem “soft” to them at all.
Record Prediction: 9-8
Should Steelers target Kirk Cousins if Rodgers deal falls through?
Ralph Vacchiano: The Bengals are loaded and good enough to be a playoff team, but the key to everything for them will be what happens in September and early October. They are notoriously slow starters and couldn’t pull themselves out of their early 1-4 hole last year. And in a division where the Ravens are a powerhouse and the Steelers should still be good, a fast start is essential. So it’s a huge help that Cincinnati’s first two games are against the Browns (in Cleveland) and Jaguars (at home). The NFL gave the Bengals a fighting chance to start fast. After that, things get dicey, especially on the road. They play at the homes of six playoff teams, including Green Bay, Minnesota, Denver and Buffalo. They had better take advantage of their soft opening.
Record Prediction: 10-7
Henry McKenna: If this team could and would commit to Shedeur Sanders for the entire year, I actually wouldn’t hate it. But Cleveland won’t. In fact, the quarterback situation tells you just about everything you need to know about the Browns for 2025. Those five quarterbacks — Deshaun Watson, Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders — are an example of one of the Browns’ many self-created messes. Watson’s contract (a part of the single worst trade in NFL history) is the reason why the team has so many low-budget options. But the difficulty of all those options is: How do you develop them all? How do you coach them all on your system? How do you get them practice reps with the top unit? How do you pick between so much mediocrity for Week 1? And Week 7? And Week 18? This QB room demonstrates Cleveland’s chronic and compounding bad decision-making. What comes next: a cleaning of house. Again.
Record Prediction: 4-13
Why Shedeur Sanders has a legit shot to be Cleveland’s QB1
AFC South
Ben Arthur: The Texans’ Super Bowl-caliber defense has gotten even better this offseason with the addition of former Eagle C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who had six interceptions last season. But Houston’s offense is still filled with question marks. Its revamped offensive line looks underwhelming on paper, and, outside of Nico Collins, quarterback C.J. Stroud is expected to lean heavily on rookie receivers. That could mean some tough sledding with a first-place schedule, against opponents like the Bills and Bucs at home and the Chiefs, Rams and Ravens on the road. The Texans should be the team to beat in the AFC South once again, but they remain a step below true contention in the conference.
Record Prediction: 9-8
Ben Arthur: A revamped secondary under new defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo will give the Colts a leg up against the quarterbacks on their schedule. But without a consistent, reliable passer of its own, Indianapolis could struggle in tight division matchups and down the stretch of 2025. That leads the Colts to their third finish under .500 in four years.
Record Prediction: 8-9
Ben Arthur: As a last-place finisher in 2024, the Titans’ schedule isn’t intimidating on paper. And No. 1 pick Cam Ward, at his worst, could still raise the floor of Tennessee’s quarterback play, which cost the team winnable games last season. But don’t be surprised to see the former Miami star have an encouraging rookie campaign (with Tennessee’s bolstered O-line and receiving corps), though not to the historic level of Jayden Daniels last season or Stroud in 2023. In a rebuild with coach Brian Callahan and new general manager Mike Borgonzi, playoff contention is more realistic in 2026 and beyond.
Record Prediction: 7-10
Ben Arthur: Of the eight teams the Jags face that finished above .500 last season, they’ll get five of them at home (Texans, Chiefs, Chargers, Rams, Seahawks), which is great news. But even with talented young players like Brian Thomas Jr. and two-way rookie Travis Hunter, and a healthy Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville still appears to lack the personnel needed to push for a playoff spot in 2025. The pass defense, in particular, is filled with question marks. The Jaguars should be better than they were last season, when they finished 4-13, but not by a wide margin.
Record Prediction: 6-11
AFC West
Carmen Vitali: Well, the Chiefs went 15-2 last year despite question marks at offensive tackle and injured skill players. Sure, they lost the Super Bowl, but they got there didn’t they? They also got the first-round bye in the AFC. So now that they’ve fortified their offensive line (even with losing Joe Thuney in a trade with Chicago), plus have a healthier receiver room, I’m supposed to think this season is going to go worse for them? The one thing that did have me dropping their win-loss record from last year is that they have to play not only their division, which should be better this year, but they also face a first-place schedule that includes the Detroit Lions, Baltimore Ravens, a Super Bowl rematch with the Philadelphia Eagles and, oh yeah, they have the Buffalo Bills thrown in there, too. The good news is they get all of those teams except the Bills at home. The bad news is, those teams all got better this offseason, too.
Record Prediction: 13-4
Have the Chiefs overtaken the Cowboys as America’s Team?
Eric D. Williams: The Chargers have nine home games, but seven of them are against 2024 playoff teams and one of them is against the Chiefs in Brazil. Road games for the Bolts, who will travel a league-high 37,086 miles in 2025, are against weaker opponents, including the Jaguars, Giants, Titans and Cowboys. Los Angeles will be better offensively this season with the return of receiver Mike Williams, along with the addition of running backs Omarion Hampton and Najee Harris. Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter has a chance to build on one of the league’s best units in his second season. Jim Harbaugh & Co. could accomplish something they have not done since 2009: win the AFC West. The Chargers finished 11-6 in 2024 and have not had back-to-back double-digit winning records since 2006-07.
Record Prediction: 11-6
Ben Arthur: The Broncos’ revamped secondary will be a factor against the great quarterbacks the team will face in-division (Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert) and beyond (Joe Burrow, Jalen Hurts, Jordan Love). Quarterback Bo Nix has continuity around him, plus the additions of veteran tight end Evan Engram and second-round rookie running back RJ Harvey in the supporting cast. But this is not the easiest third-place schedule, and teams now have a season’s worth of tape on Nix. Don’t be surprised to see the Broncos finish with a worse record than they did last year, when they won 10 games.
Record Prediction: 9-8
Eric D. Williams: With a culture-building head coach who brings a championship pedigree in Pete Carroll, the Raiders should be more competent and competitive. However, that will not hide talent deficiencies at linebacker, in the secondary and along the offensive line. Las Vegas could still struggle to consistently score on offense when teams take away tight end Brock Bowers and load the box to contain rookie phenom Ashton Jeanty. And I have concerns with how the Raiders will hold up in the back end defensively. But Carroll and the Raiders will find a way to hover around the .500 mark. Carroll has had just four losing seasons in 18 years as a head coach in the NFL.
Record Prediction: 7-10
NFC East
Ralph Vacchiano: One thing is certain about the defending Super Bowl champions: They’re going to have to earn everything they get this season. They have an incredibly hard schedule that has them facing seven playoff teams on the road. They face all four teams they beat during their Super Bowl run last season — at Green Bay, vs. the L.A. Rams, at Kansas City, plus their usual home-and-home with the Commanders, which comes in the final three weeks of this season. Plus they play at Buffalo in Week 17. It’s all brutal. The Eagles’ record may not be as gaudy as it was last year, but they sure will be battle-tested for the playoffs.
Record Prediction: 11-6
Ralph Vacchiano: The upstart Commanders and quarterback Jayden Daniels caught the NFL by surprise last season, but now the secret is out. The NFL has the Commanders in prime time five times this season, plus two other standalone games (vs. Miami in Madrid and vs. the Cowboys on Christmas Day). That’s a big spotlight on a team that may find it difficult to duplicate its 2024 success, due to a tough road that includes games in Green Bay, Minnesota, Los Angeles (Chargers), Kansas City, and, of course, Philadelphia. The home slate is a little easier, which should be good enough to get them to double-digit wins and the playoffs. They might want to clinch early, though, because they get the Eagles twice in the last three weeks.
Record Prediction: 10-7
Ralph Vacchiano: Maybe nothing about the Cowboys’ dismal 2024 season sat worse with Jerry Jones than this: They started 0-5 at home en route to an ugly 2-7 record. So it’s probably not a good thing that six of their eight games in Dallas are against playoff teams from last year, including games against both Super Bowl teams. The good news is they get to face a lot of rebuilding teams on the road, with two games in New York (Giants and Jets) and games in Las Vegas and Carolina, so they should be able to fatten up their record there. It won’t be easy, but turning around their home fortunes is probably their key to getting back to the playoffs. They’ll also have to survive a four-week stretch in November/December against the Eagles, Chiefs, Lions and Vikings. At least three of those four (all but Week 14 at Detroit) are at home.
Record Prediction: 9-8
Ralph Vacchiano: The good news is the Giants should be a better team than last year. The bad news? They’ve got the toughest strength-of-schedule in the league, at least based on last year’s records. Even worse, it’s toughest at the start. The Giants play 10 games against playoff teams overall, and six of those come in the first eight weeks of the season. By the time they get to New Orleans in Week 5, the Giants will have played at Washington, at Dallas and at home vs. the Chiefs and Chargers. It’ll be tough for them to avoid an 0-4 start. Given how tough their division is, plus a home slate that includes six playoff teams and then the 49ers and Cowboys, the Giants are going to really earn everything in a must-win year for their GM and coach.
Record Prediction: 6-11
NFC North
Carmen Vitali: The Lions are, and should be, the favorites to win the NFC North again. Their roster still looks great top to bottom, and they’ll be getting perhaps the league’s best pass rusher back from injury in Aidan Hutchinson. Still, there’s bound to be some regression when you lose both coordinators to head coaching jobs. After Detroit won 15 games last season though, I’m just not sure a little regression is going to matter all that much.
Record Prediction: 11-6
Carmen Vitali: The best thing the Vikings may have done last year is lose to the Lions in the final game of the season. It took them from first place in the division (and having to play a first-place schedule) to the wild-card round, even with 14 wins. That should pay off if young quarterback J.J. McCarthy struggles a bit in his first season, which is why I’ve predicted a bit of a regression from last year. It’s just a reality when you have a first-time signal-caller, especially one coming off injury. In some ways, however, Minnesota has “quarterback-proofed” its team, solidifying every major position on both sides of the ball to make sure it can withstand McCarthy’s learning curve. The Vikings also have the benefit of QB whisperer Kevin O’Connell leading McCarthy’s development. If all goes well, this will be O’Connell’s greatest achievement yet, and the Vikings will be vying for the top of the league’s toughest division in 2025.
Record Prediction: 10-7
Carmen Vitali: I don’t see a significant change for the Packers, and that’s a good thing. It should be enough to again get them into the playoffs, even if it’s via Wildcard. The schedule is really going to be an uphill battle with the NFC North having to play the AFC North and NFC East this season in an absolute gauntlet. On top of that, the Packers get Carolina, Arizona and Denver, all of which should be at the very least respectable if not downright good in 2025. With the additions along the offensive line and an actual first-round receiver for the first time since Jordy Nelson in 2008, quarterback Jordan Love should have the means to stay healthy and be productive. The defense has to take another step forward, especially in the pass rush, if it wants to contend. But the Packers are the most stable organization in this division, if not the conference. They’re going to be a tough out, regardless.
Record Prediction: 10-7
Carmen Vitali: The Bears won just five games in 2024 and fired their head coach midseason for the first time in franchise history. They’ve brought in Ben Johnson, the most highly coveted head-coaching candidate of this past cycle, to revamp everything. Johnson brought in a staff with both experience and new blood. He has put his stamp on the roster already, overhauling the interior of the offensive line and signing multiple defensive linemen in free agency. However, Rome wasn’t built in a day. The Lions went 1-6 to start Johnson’s tenure as offensive coordinator in 2022. They averaged just 24.7 points per game during that seven-game span. While that’s better than the Bears’ 18.2 points per game average from last season, it’s a far cry from what we’ve come to expect from a Ben Johnson offense, which averaged a league-leading 33.1 points per game last year. It’s going to take time to get to that level, and playing in the hardest division in football isn’t going to make things easier for Chicago. Let the Bears walk before they run, and if they outperform expectations, then great.
Record Prediction: 8-9
NFC South
Greg Auman: The Bucs seek their fifth straight NFC South title, having never done so in back-to-back years in their history before that. This could be the easiest path to a home playoff game since 2021, when they went 13-4 and won the division by four games. Can the offense stay a top-five unit while adjusting to a fourth different offensive coordinator in four years? Can the defense get back to form just by staying healthy after a nasty 2024? Those are the two biggest question marks, as the offense returns nearly intact and the rest of the division leans on young and unproven quarterbacks.
Record Prediction: 10-7
Greg Auman: So much hinges on how well second-year quarterback Michael Penix Jr. can play. If he can just get to 20 touchdown passes, he’ll be the first Falcons QB to do so since Matt Ryan, who did it for 13 straight seasons from 2009-21. Atlanta used its top two draft picks (and next year’s first-rounder) to get a pair of stud rookie pass rushers in Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr. Can they spark a defense that gave up 30-plus points in five losses last season? The Falcons swept the Bucs last year, but faded in the second half badly enough to let Tampa Bay win the division by two games. The larger question: If the Falcons are 7-10 and miss the playoffs for an eighth year in a row, are the head coach and general manager back for 2026?
Record Prediction: 7-10
Greg Auman: Carolina went from 2-15 in 2023 to 5-12 in Dave Canales’ first season, struggling to a 1-7 start but improving offensively and rallying around quarterback Bryce Young. Having added a top-tier receiver in rookie Tetairoa McMillan to pair with second-year pro Xavier Legette, can this be a good passing offense? Young has one career 300-yard game in 30 starts, and he’s thrown multiple touchdowns just six times. Carolina should be improved on defense with some underrated free-agency additions, but to take another step forward, the Panthers need Young to actively win games and look more like a No. 1 overall pick with the improved talent around him.
Record Prediction: 7-10
Greg Auman: The Saints took a big step back last year, with a 5-12 record that was their worst in 20 years, since before Drew Brees got to town. Can new head coach Kellen Moore get to that same record with a rookie quarterback and continued questions on defense? The Saints went 0-7 without Derek Carr last year, and now that he has retired, they’ll be putting a lot on second-round pick Tyler Shough. No rookie age 25 or older has ever thrown for more than 14 touchdown passes in his first year. If New Orleans can get top receivers Chris Olave and Rasheed Shaheed to stay healthy, that’s within Shough’s reach. Demario Davis and Cam Jordan will be 36 this season, so how much do they have left? The schedule hooks the Saints up with the Titans, Jets and Giants — sweep those three and split with the Falcons and Panthers and they’re already to five wins and beating these expectations.
Record Prediction: 4-13
NFC West
Eric D. Williams: Sean McVay’s squad has nine road games this season, but only two against teams that reached the postseason last year. Nagging injuries have slowed frontline players like Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua over the past two years, and those two stars need to stay healthy for the Rams to make a deep playoff run. The addition of veteran receiver Davante Adams and rookie tight end Terance Ferguson should add juice to L.A.’s passing game, and a young defensive front anchored by Jared Verse, Kobie Turner and Braden Fiske should take another leap in development in 2025. The Rams have won the NFC West four times in eight seasons and have reached the postseason six times since McVay took over as head coach. They are the team to beat in the division once again.
Record Prediction: 12-5
Eric D. Williams: After having the toughest schedule in the league last year, San Francisco has the easiest schedule this season, with opponents owning a .417 winning percentage in 2024. So finishing at the bottom of the NFC West has its benefits. While the 49ers must replace eight defensive starters, they should benefit from the return of Robert Saleh as defensive coordinator. On offense, the 49ers look forward to a healthy Christian McCaffrey, Trent Williams and, eventually, Brandon Aiyuk. Kyle Shanahan has not had back-to-back losing seasons since his first two years as 49ers head coach, in 2017-18. And after winning just six games in 2020, Shanahan followed that with a 10-win season in 2021. So 10 wins for San Francisco in 2025 makes sense.
Record Prediction: 10-7
Eric D. Williams: In Mike Macdonald’s first season as head coach, Seattle recovered from a slow start to win six of its last eight games, ending the 2024 season at 10-7. The Seahawks then made significant changes in the offseason, including a new quarterback in Sam Darnold, a new playmaker at receiver in Cooper Kupp and a new offensive coordinator in Klint Kubiak. The offense will lean on the running game, a point of emphasis for Macdonald. Those changes should lead to a more efficient offense eventually for the Seahawks, but they could experience some growing pains in the short term while players get acclimated to Kubiak’s new scheme. Specifically, that could mean hiccups in the competitive NFC West, which features two of the best coaches in the league in San Francisco’s Kyle Shanahan and the Rams’ Sean McVay.
Record Prediction: 9-8
Eric D. Williams: Arizona’s defense should improve after adding edge rusher Josh Sweat, along with defensive tackles Dalvin Tomlinson and Calias Campbell in free agency. The Cardinals also selected six defensive players in the draft, led by first-round defensive tackle Walter Nolen and Michigan cornerback Will Johnson in the second round. Tight end Trey McBride deservedly got a lucrative new deal this offseason and is a star in the making. However, offensive coordinator Drew Petzing still needs to figure out how to get the most out of quarterback Kyler Murray and second-year pro Marvin Harrison Jr. With James Conner turning 30 this year, there are concerns about how well the physical running back will hold up.
Record Prediction: 7-10
The following writers contributed to this story: Ben Arthur (@benyarthur); Greg Auman (@gregauman); Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis); Ralph Vacchiano (@RalphVacchiano); Carmen Vitali (@CarmieV); Eric D. Williams (@eric_d_williams).
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