The 2022 NFL schedule will feature three games on Christmas Day for the first time ever, the league has announced.
December 25 falls on Sunday this year, and the league will look to capitalize on that by offering two afternoon games and one game in primetime. The news was revealed by NFL vice president of broadcasting Mike North on a podcast hosted by WGR radio host and Buffalo Bills sideline reporter Sal Capaccio, as reported by ESPN.
The afternoon Christmas Day games will be broadcast on CBS and FOX, while the primetime game will be televised by NBC.
“Christmas, when it falls on an NFL game day, we’ve had a lot of success there, all due respect to our friends at the NBA,” North said. “It is something that our friends are interested in. If Christmas falls on a Sunday, it makes perfect sense.”
From ESPN:
It will be the third straight year the league has played on Christmas. Last year, Green Bay’s 24-22 victory over Cleveland averaged 28.6 million viewers on Fox, making it the third-most-watched game of the 2021 regular season. Indianapolis’ 22-16 win at Arizona averaged 12.6 million on NFL Network, the second-highest-viewed game in network history.
For Week 16, the league will have its regular Thursday night game on Dec. 22. Eleven games will be on Dec. 24, including a night game on NFL Network. After the Christmas tripleheader, the week will close with a Monday night contest on Dec. 26.
Earlier this week, the league announced that the 2022 NFL Schedule release has been set for Thursday, May 12 at 8:00pm ET. Prior to the complete schedule release, the NFL will unveil the following games:
- First Thursday Night Football game on Prime Video (Week 2, September 15) – Thursday, April 28 during First Round of 2022 NFL Draft
- International Games – Wednesday, May 4
- Select games – Week of May 9
- Clubs to announce their first home game opponent – Thursday, May 12 at 6:00pm ET
The 2022 NFL regular-season is scheduled to kickoff on Thursday, Sept. 8 and should feature the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams hosting an opponent to be determined.
The 2022 NFL Playoff Schedule is scheduled to begin on Saturday, Jan. 14, 2023 with the Wild-Card Round. The Divisional Round will be played on the weekend of Jan. 21-22, followed by the AFC and NFC championship games on Sunday, Jan. 29.
Super Bowl LVII is slated for Sunday, Feb. 12, 2023 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. The game will kickoff at 6:30pm ET and will be televised by FOX.
The 2022 NFL Preseason Schedule will also be released in conjunction with the regular-season schedule. The schedule will begin with the NFL/Hall of Fame Game at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, on Thursday, Aug. 4. This years game pits the Las Vegas Raiders against the Jacksonville Jaguars at 8:00pm ET on NBC.
Below are links to the 2022 NFL schedules for all 32 teams. Opponents for each team are set.
AFC East
- 2022 Buffalo Bills Schedule
- 2022 Miami Dolphins Schedule
- 2022 New England Patriots Schedule
- 2022 New York Jets Schedule
AFC North
- 2022 Baltimore Ravens Schedule
- 2022 Cincinnati Bengals Schedule
- 2022 Cleveland Browns Schedule
- 2022 Pittsburgh Steelers Schedule
AFC South
- 2022 Houston Texans Schedule
- 2022 Indianapolis Colts Schedule
- 2022 Jacksonville Jaguars Schedule
- 2022 Tennessee Titans Schedule
AFC West
- 2022 Denver Broncos Schedule
- 2022 Kansas City Chiefs Schedule
- 2022 Las Vegas Raiders Schedule
- 2022 Los Angeles Chargers Schedule
NFC East
- 2022 Dallas Cowboys Schedule
- 2022 New York Giants Schedule
- 2022 Philadelphia Eagles Schedule
- 2022 Washington Commanders Schedule
NFC North
- 2022 Chicago Bears Schedule
- 2022 Detroit Lions Schedule
- 2022 Green Bay Packers Schedule
- 2022 Minnesota Vikings Schedule
NFC South
- 2022 Atlanta Falcons Schedule
- 2022 Carolina Panthers Schedule
- 2022 New Orleans Saints Schedule
- 2022 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Schedule
NFC West