Start speadin' the news. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets visit Levi's Stadium for the San Francisco 49ers' season opener, a September 9th nationally televised Monday night game.
In the season's most anticipated game, the Niners host the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs on October 20 in the reprisal of February's Super Bowl.
San Francisco will play six primetime games, two each on Sunday, Monday, and Thursday night.
Monday Night Matchup
The Monday night season opener features the return of Rodgers—who played only four snaps last year before getting injured. A healthy Rogers elevates New York to an instant postseason contender.
San Francisco's final home game of the season will be against the Detroit Lions in a Monday night matchup on December 30th. Playoff seeding may be up for grabs in this reprisal of last year's NFC Championship Game, in which the Niners overcame a 17-point halftime deficit to stun the Lions and advance to the Super Bowl.
Sunday Night Football
The NFC East champion Cowboys return to Levi's Stadium on October 27 in a Week 8 Sunday night clash. Last year, Dallas ranked near the league lead in interceptions and sacks but had trouble stopping the run. The latter is something at which the Niners excel. Dallas was 1-3 against teams with a winning record. Their only victory against a winning team came late season in a 20-19 nailbiter versus the Lions. In last year's Week 5 showdown, the Niners thumped the Cowboys 42-10.
Week 13 features another Sunday night appearance, this time at Buffalo on December 1st against the AFC East champion Bills. Quarterback Josh Allen is a perennial MVP candidate. However, Buffalo may be undermanned at wide receiver, having lost their top two wideouts this offseason.
Thursday Night Action
The Niners play two Thursday night games, both against NFC West rivals. On October 10th, they travel to Lumen Field to take on the Seahawks in Week 6. Then, they play at home on December 12th in a Week 15 matchup versus the Rams.
After the Thursday night game in Seattle, the 49ers will have 10 days to prepare for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. Likewise, after the Thursday night game against the Rams, the 49ers have 10 days to prepare for the Dolphins.
Bye Week
The Niners bye week doesn't occur until the first week in November. Both the Chiefs and Cowboys will be coming off their byes before playing San Francisco.
Strength of Schedule
According to NFL Research, based on last season's records, the Niners and Rams are saddled with the 12th most brutal strength of schedule. Divisional rivals Seattle and Arizona are tied with the league's eighth-easiest schedule.
Green Bay drew the most demanding schedule among NFC teams.
In the uneven 17-game schedule, the NFC teams play nine home games this year, one more than last year. The 49ers will face the five divisional champions from the NFC East, NFC North, NFC South, AFC West, and AFC North: the Cowboys, Lions, Buccaneers, Chiefs, and Bills.
Back-to-Back
San Francisco has three back-to-back home game pairings and two back-to-back away game pairings. In Weeks 2 and 3, the 49ers play on the road against the Vikings and Rams. Weeks 12 and 13, they play away games against the Packers and Bills.
San Francisco is home Weeks 4 and 5 against the Patriots and Cardinals, Weeks 7 and 8 against the Chiefs and Cowboys, and Weeks 14 and 15 against the Bears and Rams.
Travel
San Francisco does not play on Thanksgiving or Christmas, nor do they have any international games. However, according to Bookies.com, it will log the fifth-most travel miles of any team.
Their most extended road trip takes them to Miami to face the Dolphins. They also travel to the Eastern time zone for games versus Tampa Bay and Buffalo.
Geen Bay has the longest road trip this season, when they fly to Sao Paulo, Brazil, to take on the Philadelphia Eagles during Week 1 on September 6th.
