The Las Vegas Raiders have had a busy offseason, and they are preparing to put together a season that will see them back in the playoffs.
It's been a while since this team has won in the postseason, and it feels like this team only has one thing that can hold them back. If all goes well we could be talking about the Raiders as a playoff team.
But first, they have to play the regular season. Soon, we will figure out who the Raiders play on what dates.
During the 2024 NFL draft, the NFL teased that the schedule release would happen in May, but they neglected to reveal an exact date. Given what we've seen the last couple of years, it should come out around the middle of May. It was released on May 12, 2022, and May 11, 2023.
Once that comes out, we will update this with the Raiders' exact schedule.
Raiders @ Dolphins: Christian Wilkins revenge game on the Dolphins for not paying him? Yeah, that should be good.
Raiders @ Chiefs: Christmas 2024?
Raiders vs. Falcons: A lot of fans are going to want to do some bad things to the Falcons for what they did during the first round of the draft - stealing Michael Penix.
The Las Vegas Raiders had six primetime games last season because when you play in the Silver and Black, you play when the lights are brightest. This season I expect them to have as many as that if not one more. They are expected to be a better team, with polarizing players like Maxx Crosby and Davante Adams and a polarizing head coach in Antonio Pierce.
Of the AFC West teams the Raiders are most likely to get matched up with on Primetime TV, it has to be the Chiefs, especially after the Christmas Day game, and the Chiefs winning the Super Bowl at Allegiant Stadium adds another layer.
Of course, it wouldn't surprise me if we see the two new head coaches in Pierce and Harbaugh, get a Primetime game.
Last season, the Denver Broncos were both the Week 1 and Week 18 matchups. So, I doubt it will be either of those. I feel like the Chiefs could be the Week 18 matchup because those are the only two teams that could potentially have playoff implications in the division.
As for the Week 1 matchup, we may see the Chargers and the Raiders play off rip.
You really can't go wrong with any AFC West matchup, though.
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