The NFL released the 2019 regular season schedule last night which means we are one step closer to getting back to the gridiron.
The defending Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots were rewarded with five primetime games on the new schedule. Three of the five primetime games will be within a 24-day period, including back-to-back primetime games versus both New York teams. The Patriots have an eight-game stretch where they either play in primetime or the 4:25 p.m. ET marquee matchup.
New England will once again enjoy a late-season bye having been rewarded with a week 10 bye. This is the eighth time in the past nine seasons that the Patriots will have a bye in the month of November.
Week 1 – Pittsburgh Steelers vs New England Patriots
Sunday, September 8, 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC
It is fitting that the six-time Super Bowl Champion Patriots should start the season versus Pittsburgh, the only other franchise to win six Super Bowls. This is the fourth time the Patriots will open the season against the Steelers and the third time as defending champions. After winning five consecutive contests versus Pittsburgh, the Patriots fell to the Steelers, 17-10, in week 15 last season. They will look to start a new streak on the night they receive ring number six.
Week 2 – New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins
Sunday, September 15, 1:00 p.m. ET, CBS
New England gets right into conference play in week two when they travel to Miami to take on the Dolphins. They look to avenge the unlikely week 14 defeat in Miami last year when they lost on a miracle touchdown by Kenyan Drake. The Patriots will have a bad taste in their mouths after that embarrassment and will come into this contest looking for revenge. The early trip to Miami also means the Patriots will not get the late-season trip to South Beach to avoid the icy North East weather.
Week 3 – New York Jets vs New England Patriots
Sunday, September 22, 1:00 p.m. ET, CBS
The Patriots head back home for their second straight divisional game versus the New York Jets. It really has not mattered if the game is home or away, the Patriots have dominated the Jets over the years. New England has won six consecutive contests including nine of the last 10 games. New England wiped to the floor with the Jets in Foxborough last season with a final score of 38-3.
Week 4 – New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills
Sunday, September 29, 1:00 p.m. ET, CBS
New England stays within the division for the third straight week when they head to Buffalo to take on the Bills. The Patriots have treated the Bills worse than the Dolphins over the years. They have won five games in a row and the Bills have only won three times in the past 30 games. YES, 30 games. The Bills are a team on the rise after they drafted Josh Allen as their starting quarterback, but they have a long way to go before they are on the Patriots’ level.
Week 5 – New England Patriots at Washington Redskins
Sunday, October 6, 1:00 p.m. ET, CBS
The Patriots go on the road for the second week in a row to take on the Washington Redskins. These two franchises do not play each other often with only 10 games played between them. Washington leads the series with a record of 6-4. The Patriots are on a three-game win streak versus Washington starting back in 2007 and the last win coming in November of 2015. It will be interesting to see who Washington will have under center in week 5. Colt McCoy is the starting quarterback as of now, but the Redskins will definitely be targeting a new signal-caller in this year’s draft.
Week 6 – New York Giants vs New England Patriots
Thursday, October 10, 8:20 p.m. ET, FOX/NFL Network/Amazon Prime Video
New England has a quick turnaround after the Washington game when they play their only Thursday night game versus the New York Giants. These two teams have only met 12 times in history but they are without doubt arch enemies. Until the Eagles beat New England in Super Bowl LII, the Patriots only Super Bowl losses under Belichick came at the hands of the Giants. New England ended a three-game losing streak versus New York, including the two Super Bowl losses, with a 28-27 victory in 2015.
Week 7 – New England Patriots at New York Jets
Monday, October 21, 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN
The Patriots get a little extra rest after their Thursday night game by getting to play on Monday night versus the New York Jets. This will be the second and final meeting of the season between the divisional opponents. With all luck, the Patriots will have won the first meeting which would be the 16th victory in the past 20 games against the Jets.
Week 8 – Cleveland Brown at New England Patriots
Sunday, October 27, 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS
Next on the schedule is a date with the young gunslinger Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns. The Browns have been a downtrodden franchise throughout history, but Mayfield has their stock on the rise. He led the Browns to a 7-8-1 record, which is their best win percentage since 2007 when they won 10 games. This will be an excellent opportunity to see the new regime of quarterbacks face the old guard in Tom Brady.
Week 9 – New England Patriots at Baltimore Ravens
Sunday, November 3, 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC
The Patriots will have another primetime battle versus the Baltimore Ravens in week nine. Baltimore is a relatively new franchise in the NFL so these to teams have only met 13 times with the Patriots leading the series 10-3. Four of those contests were playoff games with the series tied 2-2. Those four games have made this matchup a bit of a rivalry. When you add Lamar Jackson into the equation, this becomes a whole new battle. The Ravens turned into a run-heavy offense under Jackson and played behind a stout defense. Unless he learns to perfect the forward pass, the key to beating Baltimore is score early and sell out for the run.
Week 10 – BYE
Week 11 – New England Patriots vs Philidelphia Eagles
Sunday, November 17, 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS
New England will head to Philidelphia to take on the Eagles in a nationally televised rematch of Super Bowl LII. Both teams will be coming off of their bye week and will be well rested and well prepared. This is the first meeting between the two teams since the Eagles defeated the Patriots two years ago in the Super Bowl. Bill Belichick claims all games are treated the same, but you have to think this game will get some extra attention after Doug Pederson bested him on the Grand Stage. Another factor to consider is that Nick Foles was the quarterback in that Super Bowl win and he is now the starter for Jacksonville. Can Carson Wentz lead the Eagles to victory versus Belichick and Brady?
Week 12 – Dallas Cowboys vs New England Patriots
Sunday, November 24, 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS
The Patriots finish their tour of the NFC East with a date with the Dallas Cowboys. After losing the first seven games of this series, New England is on a five-game win streak against the Cowboys with the last victory coming in October of 2015. That Cowboys team was led by Brandon Weeden. Now that Dallas is armed with Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott, this next contest will be a completely different game altogether. The offense goes through Elliot so stopping the run will be crucial in this matchup.
Week 13 – New England Patriots at Houston Texans
Sunday, December 1, 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC
New England will stay in the state of Texas for their next game against the Houston Texans. Houston has not had much success in their brief history versus the Patriots, who lead the all-time series 10-1 with eight consecutive victories. The Texans are on a different trajectory after drafting Deshaun Watson at quarterback. No one can forget the epic battle Watson and Brady had in Watson’s rookie season two years ago. In just his second career start, Watson went toe-to-toe with Brady throwing for 301 yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He also rushed for 42 yards and picked up three first downs on the ground. This game could be pivotal to playoff positioning so it is very fitting it is in primetime.
Week 14 – Kanas City Chiefs vs New England Patriots
Sunday, December 8, 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS
This may just be the most intriguing game on any team’s schedule. Under the leadership of Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs put on two excellent performances against the eventual Super Bowl champion Patriots. In the first meeting in week six, Mahomes tore up the field to the tune of 352 yards and four touchdowns but were thwarted when Stephen Gostkowski hit the game-winning field goal as time expired. In the AFC Championship game, the Patriots dominated the first half when Mahomes commenced a comeback that eventually led to overtime. New England won the coin flip and Tom Brady diligently maneuvered the offense down the field and into the endzone. The Chiefs were left with a bitter taste in their mouths after not even getting to touch the ball on offense. Patrick Mahomes will come into this game with thoughts of retribution on his mind.
Week 15 – New England Patriots at Cincinnati Bengals
Sunday, December 15, 1:00 p.m. ET, CBS
The Cincinnati Bengals a coming off a wretched 2018 campaign which ended with them winning six games and losing 10. They appear to be a franchise in disarray but could be on a different path under new head coach Zach Taylor. The Bengals seem to be trying to catch some Sean McVay magic as Taylor is one of McVay’s former assistants. Taylor may opt to turn the page and move on from Andy Dalton and select a quarterback from this year’s draft. It will be interesting to see who is under center for the Bengals come week 15.
Week 16 – Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots
Saturday, December 21 or Sunday, December 22 (other information TBD)
The second and final divisional battle between the Bills and Patriots has some uncertainty surrounding it at this point. The league has decided to reserve a handful of matchups that they will choose from to flex to Saturday the 21st. Along with Patriots-Bills, Houston at Tampa Bay, Detroit at Denver, Chargers hosting Raiders and 49ers at Rams, three games will be selected based on playoff implications to be played on Saturday while the others will play Sunday, December 22.
Week 17 – Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots
Sunday, December 29, 1:00 p.m. ET, CBS
For the third straight season, the Patriots will end their season with back-to-back home games when the Miami Dolphins will travel to New England. This will be the first time in five seasons that the second meeting of these two teams was not in Miami. The Dolphins will have to leave the comfort of their warm weather and beaches to head to the frigid late-December cold in the North East. This could provide the defending champs with a crucial advantage as the playoff picture rounds out in the final week.
