Start making your autumn vacation plans, fans, because the 2017 Patriots schedule is now complete!
As reigning Super Bowl champions, New England will be featured five times in prime time, beginning with the league's opening game on Thursday night, Sept. 7. A second Thursday night tilt, two Sunday night affairs, and one Monday night contest are also on tap.
Somewhat surprisingly, the Patriots have nine 1 o'clock kickoffs and just two 4:25 start times at this point (pending the flexible scheduling decisions that are made in-season, which could alter those times for the benefit of competitiveness).
There's also a challenging six-week period in which New England plays five road games. As we do each April, let's examine the entire schedule on a block-by-block basis.
The first quarter of the Patriot's season begins with three of the first four games at Gillette Stadium. After New England's opener against Kansas City on that first Thursday night, they'll have 10 days before traveling to New Orleans to face the Saints in the first of three straight 1 o'clock kickoffs. Home games versus Houston and Carolina immediately follow.
Check out a sample of some of the players who will face the Patriots at Gillette Stadium during the 2017 NFL season.
Houston Texans linebacker Whitney Mercilus (59) celebrates after a sack during an NFL Wild Card Playoff game between the Houston Texans and the Oakland Raiders on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2017 in Houston. The Texans beat the Raiders 27-14. (Matt Patterson via AP)
Houston Texans defensive end Jadeveon Clowney (90) celebrates during to an NFL AFC divisional playoff football game against the New England Patriots on Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017, in Foxborough, Mass. New England won 34-16. (Aaron M. Sprecher via AP)
In this photo, altered with an Instagram filter, Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (99) celebrates during an NFL wild card playoff football game against the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016, in Houston. Kansas City won 30-0. (Aaron M. Sprecher via AP)
Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly (59) celebrates after making a play during an NFL Super Bowl 50 football game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif. The Broncos defeated the Panthers 24-10. (Kevin Terrell via AP)
Carolina Panthers defensive tackle Kawann Short (99) celebrates during an NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2015 in Charlotte, N.C. The Panthers defeated the Eagles 27-16. (Perry Knotts via AP)
Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen (88) celebrates after catching a touchdown during an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2016 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles. (Ben Liebenberg via AP)
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) celebrates in the end zone after a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Tampa, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 1, 2017. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) celebrates a touchdown during the NFC Conference Championship game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017, in Atlanta, Ga. The Falcons won the game, 44-21. (Greg Trott via AP)
Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones (11) runs for a touchdown after a catch during the NFL football NFC championship game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017, in Atlanta. Atlanta won 44-21. (Peter Read Miller via AP)
Atlanta Falcons' Alex Mack plays against the New England Patriots during the second half of the NFL Super Bowl 51 football game Sunday, Feb. 5, 2017, in Houston. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
San Diego Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa celebrates after a sack against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)
San Diego Chargers cornerback Casey Hayward celebrates an interception against the Houston Texans during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
San Diego Chargers outside linebacker Melvin Ingram reacts during the second half of an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) celebrates a run during the first half of an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Kansas City Chiefs strong safety Eric Berry (29) celebrates after intercepting a pass in the end zone during the first half of an NFL divisional playoff football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters (22) reacts during an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016 in Kansas City, Mo. Kansas City won 33-10. (Aaron M. Sprecher via AP)
Buffalo Bills offensive guard Richie Incognito (64) blocks Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Earl Mitchell (90) during an NFL football game on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. Miami won 34-31 in overtime. (Aaron M. Sprecher via AP)
Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy (25) celebrates his touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Buffalo Bills wide receiver Sammy Watkins (14) celebrates after scoring on a touchdown pass from quarterback Tyrod Taylor against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Miami Dolphins running back Jay Ajayi (23) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Miami Dolphins defensive end Cameron Wake celebrates as he leaves the field after beating the Tennessee Titans 38-10 in an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 18, 2015, in Nashville, Tenn. Wake had four sacks in the game. (AP Photo/Weston Kenney)
Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh (93) during an NFL regular season game against the New York Jets on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016 in East Rutherford, N.J. The Dolphins won, 34-13. (Ric Tapia via AP)
New York Jets defensive end Leonard Williams (92) celebrates his sack during the NFL regular season game against the Buffalo Bills in East Rutherford, NJ. The Bills won, 22-17. (Ric Tapia via AP)
New York Jets wide receiver Eric Decker (87) celebrates with teammates Matt Forte (22) and Nick Mangold (74) after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NFL preseason football game against the New York Giants Saturday, Aug. 27, 2016, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)
New York Jets running back Matt Forte (22) celebrates a touchdown in the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins, Sunday, Nov. 6th, 2016 in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Miami Dolphins defeated the New York Jets 27-23. (Logan Bowles via AP Images)
It's a short turnaround, however, between the Panthers contest and the beginning of the next four-game block. The Patriots will have just three days to prepare for the Tampa Bay Bucs, whom they'll play on Thursday, Oct. 5 at Raymond James Stadium. This will mark New England's first Thursday road game since the Thanksgiving game against the Jets in 2012.
Coincidentally, they'll visit those Jets the following Sunday for a 1 o'clock game before returning home to host Atlanta – the team vanquished in Super Bowl LI – on Sunday Night Football. A 1 p.m. home game versus the L.A. Chargers rounds out the second quarter of 2017.
For the second consecutive year, New England will enjoy its bye week at the precise midpoint of the season, in Week 9 – the first weekend of November. They'll need the rest, too, because a potentially long two-game road trip looms thereafter.
Coming directly out of the bye, Bill Belichick's squad will travel to Denver for another Sunday Night Football appearance. Then, they head south of the border to take on the Oakland Raiders in Mexico City.
This presents possibly the most intriguing aspect of the season for New England. Given that both Denver and Mexico City are high-altitude destinations, Belichick might consider making this back-to-back stretch a weeklong trip, as he has done in previous seasons when long flights were scheduled in consecutive weeks.
Particularly with the Denver game being at night, it stands to reason that Belichick might want to keep his players conditioned to the thin air, either by remaining in Denver for a few days or traveling straight to Mexico to practice and prepare for the remainder of the next week.
Finding a suitable facility in either location will, of course, determine whether or not this is feasible, but it sure seems more effective than flying back and forth to New England several times. Such week-long sojourns have proven effective for the Patriots in the past.
Whatever they decide, they'll be back in Foxborough in Week 12 to host the Miami Dolphins.
That brings us to the final five-game stretch of the 2017 campaign.
For three straight weeks, the Patriots will be on the road, with trips to Buffalo, Miami for Monday Night Football, and a 4:25 date with the Steelers in Pittsburgh. But for the holidays, the schedule makers gave New England the gift of being home for Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve against division rivals Buffalo and the Jets.
There are some potential travel challenges with this layout, but with five home games before the bye and five on the road afterward, it's a balanced schedule. And it'll be here before you know it.
