The long wait for Patriots fans is coming to an end. Exactly four months from today, Gillette Stadium is preparing to host a full house as New England begins a new year against a familiar AFC East opponent.

Like last season, the Patriots are welcoming the Miami Dolphins to Foxborough for the first game of this coming regular season. Kickoff at Gillette Stadium is set for 4:25 Eastern on Sunday, September 12 and will be broadcast live on television here in the U.S. by CBS.

This marks the fourth time in the past decade that the Patriots and Dolphins will meet in the regular season opener. Miami played host back in 2014 and 2011, while a year ago, New England came away with a 21-11 victory over the 'Phins in an empty Gillette Stadium as COVID-19 lockdowns permeated the sports world and the rest of civilization.

This time around, though, if current expectations for the lifting of certain pandemic-related restrictions are met, Bill Belichick's squad will once again have a decided home-field advantage with a capacity crowd of football-hungry fans who've been waiting more than a year for this moment.

But what about the remaining 16 games (remember, the NFL is expanding to 17 regular season games in 2021)? Details will be available later today, right here on patriots.com. You can check back around 7:45 p.m. Eastern for the full slate and in-depth analysis of how it's arranged.

Immediately thereafter, for a more thorough look at the entire Patriots schedule, along with the rest of the NFL teams' schedules, tune in to the televised Schedule Release broadcast on NFL Network tonight, May 12, at 8 p.m. Eastern.