Falcons will host Green Bay Packers in Week 2

Desmond Ridder and the #Falcons will host Jordan Love and the #Packers in Week 2 of the 2023 NFL season

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While the Atlanta Falcons won’t know their full schedule for the 2023 NFL season until Thursday evening, the leaks have already started. Obviously, nothing is official at this point, but it sounds like Atlanta will get an early look at Aaron Rodgers’ replacement in Green Bay.

According to The Athletic’s Matt Schneiderman, the Falcons will host the Packers in Week 2. The game will take place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on September 17 at 1 p.m. ET.

After finishing third in the NFC North last season, the Packers traded quarterback Aaron Rodgers away to the Jets and will go forward with Jordan Love as their new QB1. As for the Falcons, they loaded up on defense in free agency and added dynamic running back Bijan Robinson in the draft.

While both teams have talent, this Week 2 matchup will likely come down to the play of the young quarterbacks. Love, a former first-round pick, and Ridder, a former third-round pick, are both entering their first season as their teams’ official starter.

Check back for more leaks leading up to tonight’s schedule release.

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Commanders 2023 schedule leaks tracker: Every game we know so far

We’re tracking all of the Commanders schedule news ahead of the full release on Thursday night

The NFL will release the 2023 schedule on Thursday night with a prime-time special on the NFL Network. However, games for all 32 teams will be leaked throughout the day.

The NFL will release information on prime-time and overseas games, but reporters will leak other games throughout the day.

We’ll keep track of the Commanders’ schedule leaks here and follow up with the entire schedule tonight.

Report: Commanders and Cowboys to play on Thanksgiving

The old rivals last met on Thanksgiving in 2020 — it went well for Washington.

The Washington Commanders will play on Thanksgiving in 2023, according to a report from JP Finlay of 106.7 The Fan and NBC Sports Washington.

Washington’s opponent: The Dallas Cowboys, of course.

This is Washington’s first playing on Thanksgiving Day since 2020 — against the Cowboys. Remember that one? The then-Football Team dominated America’s Team with a 41-16 victory. Rookie running back Antonio Gibson led Washington with 115 rushing yards and three touchdowns, but the play of the day was Montez Sweat’s interception return for a touchdown.

Dallas is coming off an appearance in the NFC’s divisional round in 2022, while the Commanders fell just short of the playoffs. The two teams met in the regular-season finale in January, with Washington dominating the Cowboys 26-6 in quarterback Sam Howell’s first career start.

The NFL will release the full schedule for all 32 teams Thursday night.

Commanders 2023 home schedule will be very strong

Washington has a tough home schedule in 2023.

The NFL will release the entire 2023 regular season schedule Thursday evening, and one thing is already certain, the Commanders home schedule is quite good for the home fans.

First, of course, are the NFC East divisional rival games. Hey, the NFC East recorded the best record of any division last year as the Eagles went 14-3, and won the NFC Championship before losing a tight Super Bowl to the Chiefs.

Then came the Cowboys who finished 12-5, trounced the Bucs in the first round before losing a hard-fought 19-12 game to the 49ers. You can’t forget the Giants who went 9-7-1, went to Minnesota, and beat the Vikings in the first round before losing to the Eagles. So the division games are stout in 2023.

The other three NFC home opponents all feature exciting offensive players. The Cardinals and Kyler Murray, the Bears with Justin Fields, and the 49ers who won their last nine regular-season games in 2023 are led by Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel and defensive monster Nick Bosa. Bosa collected 18.5 sacks, 19 tackles for a loss and 48 quarterback hits.

The 2023 AFC opponents coming to visit the Commanders will be the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills. The Dolphins were 9-8 and 8-5 in games when quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was available to play and pass to speedster receivers Tyreek Hill (119 receptions and 1,710 yards) and Jalen Waddle (75 receptions for a team-leading 18.1 yards per reception).

The Bills were led by dual-threat quarterback Josh Allen who passed for 4,283 yards, 35 touchdowns and completed 63 percent of his passes in 2022. If that wasn’t enough, Allen also rushed for 762 yards averaging 6.1 yards per carry.

The home schedule for 2023 looks to be quite the treat.

How many Commanders fans will be in the stands to cheer and support the Commanders against these tough NFL opponents?

 

Commanders will travel over 17,000 miles in 2023, 18th-most of any team

The Commanders have three trips West in 2023.

The Washington Commanders will make three trips West in 2023. Washington has road games against the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks next season.

While West Coast trips can often be daunting tasks for teams in the Eastern time zone, fortunately for the Commanders, most of their games will be played on East Coast.

According to Bill Speros of Bookies.com, the Commanders will travel around 17,498 miles in 2023. That is 18th in the NFL, just behind the Philadelphia Eagles. The Commanders will travel across 18 time zones.

Washington’s other NFC East foes, Dallas and the New York Giants rank No. 11 and 12, respectively, in miles traveled for 2023.

While West Coast trips can be difficult, much of that depends on the schedule. Will the Commanders be going West on a short week? Or will one of those trips come after a bye? Those are the things that matter when looking at a schedule.

We’ll know all of those answers Thursday night when the NFL releases the full 2023 schedule.

Predicting the Commanders’ home opener in 2023

Who will the Commanders host in the home opener? We make our prediction.

Will the Washington Commanders open the 2023 season on the road or home at FedEx Field? The NFL will unveil the 2023 schedule Thursday night, and there will be leaks throughout the day, such as who each team will open the season against.

We’ve known Washington’s list of opponents for some time. On Thursday, we’ll know the whens of each game.

The Commanders will, presumably, have a new owner by September. Naturally, fans want to know if Snyder’s absence will positively impact Washington’s home attendance. The Commanders haven’t always had trouble filling up FedEx Field in recent years, but unfortunately, it is the opponent’s fans that have filled up Washington’s home stadium.

So for Washington’s home opener, it makes sense to schedule a team that doesn’t have a strong national following or is a division team. That would rule out the Cowboys, Eagles, Giants, Bills and Bears. The Bills and Bears always travel well. That leaves Washington’s final three home opponents as the Miami Dolphins, San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals.

At first glance, it makes sense to schedule the Cardinals early, as they could be the worst team in the NFL. Washington has opened the season against Miami twice at FedEx Field since 2007 [2007 & 2015]. The Dolphins and Washington split those games.

The Dolphins will be one of the NFL’s most exciting teams in 2023, while the 49ers are a Super Bowl contender, depending on what happens at quarterback.

Will it be Miami, Arizona, or San Francisco? There is a good chance it will be one of the three.

Ultimately, the NFL wants the Commanders to begin a new era on a strong note, so making the Arizona Cardinals the home opener makes the most sense.

Commanders’ strength of schedule is 8th-toughest in NFL for 2023

The Commanders face a difficult schedule in 2023, based on 2022 records.

The NFL will release the 2023 schedule Thursday, ending one of the more pointless offseason exercises: mock schedules.

Sure, mock schedules, like mock drafts, are fun, and they give us all something to talk about as we anxiously await a new NFL season. However, we can look ahead to the new season on Thursday, mapping out which games to attend or which stretches are the most difficult, etc.

We know every NFL’s team list of opponents once the previous season is finished. For example, the Washington Commanders will have nine away games in 2023. The Commanders will have three trips out West in 2023 [Los Angeles Rams, Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks.]

How difficult is Washington’s 2023 schedule?

Per Andrew Siciliano of the NFL Network via NFL Research, the Commanders have the eighth-toughest schedule next season.

Let’s be clear, May’s strength of schedule is much different than November’s strength of schedule. Some teams projected to be playoff teams will be massive disappointments. While others expected to be selecting in the top 10 of the 2024 NFL draft will be playoff contenders. It happens every year.

Could Washington be one of those latter teams that make a playoff push in 2023? Considering the talent on both sides of the ball, it’s not far-fetched. However, everything for the Commanders comes down to what they receive from the quarterback position next fall.

NFL 2023 schedule leaks will begin Wednesday

Will the Commanders play overseas in 2023?

The next-most anticipated day on the NFL calendar is Thursday when the league-owned NFL Network hosts a three-hour primetime show to release the 2023 schedule.

While some fans don’t find schedule-release day particularly interesting, others view it as another exciting stop on the NFL’s widely popular offseason carousel.

Throughout the day on Thursday, different media members who cover the team will have bits and pieces of your favorite team’s schedule, so by the time 8:00 p.m. ET comes around, you have a good idea of what the new schedule will look like.

However, the day before the league releases the 2023 schedule, the NFL will have strategic leaks to build toward Thursday. According to Kevin Seifert of ESPN, at least three announcements will come out a day early on Wednesday.

How does this impact the Washington Commanders? Will Washington play overseas for the first time since a 2016 tie against the Cincinnati Bengals at Wembley Stadium in London? We could also find out if the Commanders have any prime-time games — and when — on Wednesday.

 

Everything you need to know about Seahawks 2023 schedule release

Here’s what you need to know to find out when the Seattle Seahawks 2023 regular-season schedule will be revealed.

The National Football League will be releasing the complete 2023 regular-season schedule on Thursday, May 11 at 5:00 p.m. PT.  You can catch all the action live on the NFL Network, NFL.com, Seahawks.com and all of the team’s social media channels.

A few matchups will be revealed earlier than the rest, including the international games and the Black Friday game, both to be announced on May 10.

Also on May 10, Fox & Friends and CBS Mornings will announce several individual contests followed by the reveal of a few more matchups May 11 on the Today Show and Good Morning America.

Here’s a reminder of the Seahawks’ home and away opponents for the 2023 season:

HOME: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Commanders, Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers

AWAY: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens, Dallas Cowboys, Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans

Seahawks single-game tickets will go on sale once the full schedule is released.

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Patty Gasso’s extension, Selmon Brothers statue highlights Oklahoma Sooners news and notes

Patty Gasso gets an extension, and the Selmon Brothers will get a new statue capping off an incredible week of news from Oklahoma.

As the Oklahoma Sooners get set to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers in part two of their home-and-home series, the University of Oklahoma provided some highlights off of the gridiron this week.

OU Softball released its schedule, handed their living legend a contract extension, and earned a commitment from the No. 2 player in the 2024 class.

The athletic department also announced kickoff time for their matchup with Kansas State and that they’ll be honoring the legendary Selmon Brothers as part of the weekend’s festivities.

Check out some of the top Sooners’ stories from the week.