2024 NFL season
| Regular season | |
|---|---|
| Duration | September 5, 2024 – January 5, 2025 |
| Playoffs | |
| Start date | January 11, 2025 |
| Super Bowl LIX | |
| Date | February 9, 2025 |
| Site | Caesars Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Pro Bowl | |
| Date | February 2, 2025 |
| Site | TBA |
The 2024 NFL season is scheduled to be the 105th season of the National Football League (NFL). The season is scheduled to begin on September 5, 2024, with the defending Super Bowl LVIII champion hosting the NFL Kickoff Game, and end on January 5, 2025.
The playoffs are then scheduled to start on January 11, and conclude with Super Bowl LIX, the league's championship game, at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on February 9.
Player movement
The 2024 NFL league year and trading period is scheduled to begin on March 13. On March 11, teams will be allowed to exercise options for 2024 on players with option clauses in their contracts, submit qualifying offers to their pending restricted free agents, and submit a Minimum Salary Tender to retain exclusive negotiating rights to their players with expiring 2023 contracts and fewer than three accrued seasons of free agent credit. Teams will be required to be under the salary cap using the "top 51" definition (in which the 51 highest paid-players on the team's payroll must have a combined salary cap). On March 13, clubs will be allowed to contact and begin contract negotiations with players whose contracts had expired and thus became unrestricted free agents.[1]
| C | Center | CB | Cornerback | DB | Defensive back | DE | Defensive end[a] | |||
| DL | Defensive lineman | DT | Defensive tackle | FB | Fullback | FS | Free safety | |||
| G | Guard[b] | K | Kicker[c] | KR | Kickoff returner | LB | Linebacker | |||
| LS | Long snapper | MLB | Middle linebacker[d] | OT | Offensive tackle | OL | Offensive lineman | |||
| OLB | Outside linebacker[a] | NT | Nose tackle | P | Punter | PR | Punt returner | |||
| QB | Quarterback | RS | Return specialist | RB | Running back | S | Safety | |||
| SS | Strong safety | TE | Tight end | WR | Wide receiver |
Free agency
Free agency is scheduled to begin on March 13, 2024.[1]
Retirements
Other retirements
Draft
The 2024 NFL Draft is scheduled to take place around Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza in Detroit, Michigan, on April 25–27.[4] Chicago will have the first selection via a trade from Carolina, who had the league's worst record in 2023.
Regular season
The season is planned to be played over an 18-week schedule, beginning on September 5, with the NFL Kickoff Game. Each of the league's 32 teams plays 17 games, with one bye week. The regular season is then scheduled to end on January 5, 2025; all games during the final weekend will be intra-division games, as it has been since 2010.[1]
Each team plays the other three teams in its own division twice, one game against each of the four teams from a division in its own conference, one game against each of the four teams from a division in the other conference, one game against each of the remaining two teams in its conference that finished in the same position in their respective divisions the previous season (e.g., the team that finished fourth in its division would play all three other teams in its conference that also finished fourth in their divisions), and one game against a team in another division in the other conference that also finished in the same position in their respective division the previous season.[5]
The division pairings for 2024 are as follows:[5]
|
Four intra-conference games |
Four interconference games |
Interconference game by 2023 position |
Highlights of the 2023 season are planned to include (unless otherwise noted) the following, with all specific teams and kickoff times planned to be announced in spring 2024:
- NFL Kickoff Game The season is scheduled to begin the Kickoff Game on September 5, 2024, expected to be hosted by the defending Super Bowl LVIII champion either Kansas City or San Francisco.
- NFL International Series: The NFL plans to have five international games in 2024. Three games are planned to be held in London, England, with Jacksonville hosting a game at Wembley Stadium, and Chicago and Minnesota each hosting a game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Another game will be hosted by Carolina at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany. The fifth game will take place at Arena Corinthians in São Paulo, Brazil, which would become the first NFL regular season game held in South America.[6][7]
- Thanksgiving: Three Thanksgiving Day games are planned to be held on November 28, with Detroit and Dallas hosting the traditional afternoon doubleheader, and a primetime game with no fixed teams. Another game will be scheduled on the Friday afternoon after Thanksgiving.[8]
- Christmas: Christmas Day, December 25, lands on a Wednesday; the league stated in 2023 that it would not schedule any games for that day.[9][10]
Postseason
The 2024 playoffs are scheduled to begin with the wild-card round, with three wild-card games played in each conference. Wild Card Weekend is planned for January 11–13, 2025. In the Divisional round, scheduled for January 18–19, the top seed in the conference will play the lowest remaining seed and the other two remaining teams will play each other. The winners of those games will advance to the Conference Championship games scheduled for January 26. Super Bowl LIX is scheduled for February 9 at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.[1]
Head coaching and front office changes
Head coaches
| Team | Departing coach | Interim coach | Incoming coach | Reason for leaving | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Falcons | Arthur Smith | Raheem Morris | Fired | Smith was fired on January 8, after three seasons with the Falcons. During his tenure, the team was 21–30 (.412), with no playoff appearances.[11]
Morris was hired on January 25. Morris was previously the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams from 2021–2023. This is his third head coaching position, having previously served as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2009–2011, as well as the interim head coach of the Falcons during the 2020 season, compiling an overall record of 21–38 (.356).[12] | |
| Carolina Panthers | Frank Reich | Chris Tabor | Dave Canales | On November 27, 2023, Reich was fired after a 1–10 (.091) start in his first year as Panthers' head coach. Tabor, the team's special teams coordinator, was elevated as interim head coach. This was his first experience as head coach.[13] He finished the season with a 1–5 (.167) record.
Canales was hired on January 25. A long-time offensive assistant for Seattle, he was most recently the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the 2023 season. This is his first head coaching position on any level.[14] | |
| Las Vegas Raiders | Josh McDaniels | Antonio Pierce | After a 3–5 (.375) start, McDaniels was fired on October 31, 2023, after one and a half seasons with the team. During his tenure, the Raiders were 9–16 (.360) with no playoff appearances.[15]
Pierce, the team's linebackers coach, was promoted to interim head coach. This was his first head coaching position.[16] He finished the season with a 5–4 (.556) record. On January 19, Pierce was named the full-time head coach of the Raiders.[17] | ||
| Los Angeles Chargers | Brandon Staley | Giff Smith | Jim Harbaugh | After a 5–9 (.357) start, Staley was fired on December 15 after almost three seasons with the team. During his tenure, the Chargers were 24–24 (.500) with one playoff appearance and no playoff wins.[18]
Smith, the team's outside linebackers coach, was elevated as interim head coach. This was his first head coaching position.[19] He finished the season with a 0–3 (.000) record. Harbaugh was hired on January 24. This is his second NFL coaching position, previously coaching the San Francisco 49ers from 2011–2014, leading them to two NFC West division titles, three consecutive NFC Championship Game appearances and a Super Bowl appearance (which he lost to his brother John), ending his tenure with a regular season record of 44–19–1 (.695). He was most recently the head coach at Michigan from 2015–2023, leading the Wolverines to three College Football Playoff appearances and a National Championship in 2023. His college experience also included stints at San Diego and Stanford, and his overall college record was 144–52 (.735).[20] | |
| New England Patriots | Bill Belichick | Jerod Mayo | Mutual agreement | On January 11, Belichick and the Patriots mutually agreed to part ways after 24 seasons together. In that period, the team compiled a regular season record of 266–121 (.687), winning the AFC East division title 17 times with 18 overall playoff appearances. In the post-season, the team compiled a record of 30–12 (.714), with 13 AFC Championship Game appearances, nine Super Bowl appearances, and six Super Bowl championships (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, LI, and LIII).[21]
Mayo was hired on January 12. A Patriots linebacker from 2008–2015 (Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2008) and a Patriots defensive coach from 2019–2023, this is his first head coaching position at any level.[22] | |
| Seattle Seahawks | Pete Carroll | Mike Macdonald | Reassigned | On January 10, Carroll was reassigned to an advisor role after fourteen seasons as head coach of the Seahawks. During his tenure, the team was 137–89–1 (.606). The team made the playoffs ten times, including five NFC West division titles, two Super Bowl appearances, the Super Bowl XLVIII championship, and an overall playoff record of 10–9 (.526).[23]
Macdonald was hired on January 31. A long time Ravens defensive assistant, he was most recently the Ravens' defensive coordinator from 2022–2023. This is his first head coaching position at any level.[24] | |
| Tennessee Titans | Mike Vrabel | Brian Callahan | Fired | On January 9, Vrabel was fired after six seasons with the Titans. During his tenure, the team was 54–45 (.545), with two AFC South division titles in three overall playoff appearances, and a playoff record of 2–3 (.400).[25]
Callahan was hired on January 24. A long time offensive assistant for several teams, he was most recently the Cincinnati Bengals' offensive coordinator from 2019–2023. This is his first head coaching position at any level.[26] | |
| Washington Commanders | Ron Rivera | TBD | On January 8, Rivera was fired after four seasons with the Commanders. During his tenure, the team was 26–40–1 (.396), with one playoff appearance and no playoff wins.[27] | ||
Front office
| Team | Position | Departing office holder | Interim replacement | Incoming office holder | Reason for leaving | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Panthers | General manager | Scott Fitterer | Dan Morgan | Fired | Fitterer was fired on January 8 after three seasons with the team. During his tenure, the Panthers were 14–37 (.275) with no playoff appearances.[28]
On January 22, Morgan was promoted from assistant general manager to president of football operation/general manager.[29] | |
| Las Vegas Raiders | Dave Ziegler | Champ Kelly | Tom Telesco | After a 3–5 start, Ziegler was fired on October 31, 2023, after one and a half seasons with the team. During his tenure, the Raiders were 9–16 (.360) with no playoff appearances.[15]
Kelly, the team's assistant general manager, would serve as interim GM for the rest of the season.[30] Telesco, who spent the last 11 seasons as general manager of the Los Angeles Chargers, was hired on January 23.[31] | ||
| Los Angeles Chargers | Tom Telesco | JoJo Wooden | Joe Hortiz | Telesco was fired on December 15, 2023, after 11 seasons with the team.[18]
Wooden, the team's director of player personnel, served as interim GM for the rest of the season.[19] Hortiz was hired on January 30. He previously served for the Baltimore Ravens from 1998 to 2023 in various executive roles and in the last five seasons as the director of player personnel.[32] | ||
| New England Patriots | Bill Belichick | TBD | Mutual agreement | On January 11, the Patriots and head coach and de facto GM Belichick agreed to part ways after 24 seasons.[21] | ||
| Washington Commanders | Martin Mayhew | Adam Peters | Fired | On January 15, the Commanders hired Peters, assistant GM of the 49ers, as GM.[33] | ||
Uniforms
Uniform changes
- Houston announced that the team will implement four separate new designs, replacing the original uniform set used by the franchise since its inception. A new shade of "H-Town Blue" will be incorporated on at least two of the designs. The original logo will be retained. The uniforms will be fully introduced during the week of the 2024 NFL Draft.[34][35]
Media
National
Linear television
This will be the second season under 11-year U.S. media rights agreements with CBS, Fox, NBC, and ESPN/ABC along with its Spanish counterparts ESPN Deportes, Fox Deportes, and Telemundo Deportes.[36] Under these linear television rights:
- Sunday afternoon games are split between CBS and Fox (each network will be airing ten Doubleheaders, with both networks airing one in Weeks 1 and 18). When the initial schedule is created, CBS and Fox will be able to specify a limited amount of games involving AFC and NFC teams, respectively, that they want to air, but otherwise the league will be free to schedule games regardless of conference. On Thanksgiving afternoon this season, CBS will have the early Detroit game and Fox the late Dallas game. CBS also has the option of producing alternative broadcasts of selected games on Nickelodeon.[36]
- NBC will continue to air Sunday Night Football, the NFL Kickoff Game, and the primetime Thanksgiving game.[36]
- ESPN will continue to produce Monday Night Football and a doubleheader on the last Saturday of the season. Most of these games will be exclusive on ESPN. Three selected Mondays will be doubleheaders, with one game airing on ABC and the other game on ESPN. Selected telecasts may be ABC/ESPN simulcasts or only exculsive on ABC.[36] This will also be the last season under ESPN's contract with Omaha Productions to produce the alternative Manningcast on ESPN2 in selected Mondays.[37]
Streaming
- This will be the third year of a 12-year deal with Amazon Prime Video and Twitch to exclusively stream Thursday Night Football.[38] This will also be the second season that Amazon/Twitch will stream the game on the Friday afternoon after Thanksgiving.[8]
- For residential customers, Peacock will exclusively stream one selected regular season game (for commercial customers, it will once again be available on Everpass Media),[39][40] as well as all of NBC's games.[36]
- For residential customers, ESPN+ will exclusively stream one selected International Series game (for commercial customers, it will once again available on ESPN+ for business on DirecTV),[41][failed verification][42] as well as selected ESPN and all ABC games.[36]
- Paramount+ will stream locally available CBS games.[36]
- For residential customers in the United States, this will be the second season that the NFL Sunday Ticket out-of-market sports package will exclusively be on YouTube TV, as well as on YouTube's Primetime Channels service as a standalone subscription option, and all commercial customers receive this service (along with streaming of Thursday Night Football) on DirecTV.[43][44][45]
- The league's streaming service NFL+ will continue to live stream in-market regular season and postseason games on mobile devices only, radio broadcasts for all games, most out-of-market preseason games and a live stream of NFL Network on its base tier, and replays of games along with a live stream of NFL RedZone on its premium tier.[46]
Postseason
The broadcast rights for one Wild Card game will go up for bids, taking over Peacock's expired one-year contract.[47][48] Another Wild Card game is under an annual rotation with CBS, Fox, and NBC since 2020, with CBS airing two games this postseason per the contract (one of which must be a AFC game). Fox is still guaranteed at least one NFC game. NBC will air the Sunday night game under the fourth year of its seven-year deal.[49][50][51] ESPN/ABC will be entering its fourth year of their five-year deal for the Monday night Wild Card game.[52][53]
This will be the second season that all four broadcast television partners air one divisional playoff game per season (ESPN/ABC, Fox, CBS, and NBC).[54]
Fox will televise Super Bowl LIX in the annual rotation of Super Bowl broadcasters.[55]
References
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