CHARLOTTE — The dates and times for the 2024 Carolina Panthers NFL season have been announced.
[ Carolina Panthers to face the New York Giants in Germany next season ]
Coach Dave Canales’ first year as head coach will include a trip across the Atlantic, a rotation out West and a date with the defending champions, the Carolina Panthers stated in a news release.
The team opens with a road game against divisional opponent, going to New Orleans in Week 1, the team said.
The home opener in Week 2 is against the Chargers and new head coach (and one-time Panthers QB) Jim Harbaugh.
Of the Panthers’ first eight games, three are at home, and five are on the road. In Week 5, the last two No. 1 overall picks will face off, as Bryce Young and the Panthers travel to Chicago to take on Caleb Williams and the Bears.
In Week 10, the Panthers travel overseas, where the club has been making inroads in Germany, to face the New York Giants in Munich. That game will kick off at 9:30 a.m. ET, which will be 3:30 pm (CEST) local time in Munich.
After returning home and recovering from jet lag with a bye week, the Panthers will face the defending champion, Kansas City Chiefs in Week 12. The final two games of the regular season will be on the road against divisional opponents, at Tampa Bay and then at Atlanta to close out the season, the Panthers said.
Carolina’s three preseason games were also announced with the schedule release. There will be two road games, both in the cooler Northeast: the New England Patriots (preseason Week 1) and at the Buffalo Bills (preseason Week 3). The New York Jets will travel to Charlotte for preseason Week 2.
Of note, there are currently no prime-time games (though that is subject to change) and no games played on holidays, with all 17 games scheduled for Sunday afternoons (with five in the 4 o’clock window). The club will also only have two sets of back-to-back road games, in Week 7 (at Washington) and Week 8 (at Denver), then another set to end the season (at Tampa and Atlanta).
The first two months of the schedule offer some opportunities, as they don’t see a team that made the playoffs in 2023 until after the bye, team officials said. They also have three games in the front half of the schedule against teams with rookie quarterbacks (Williams, Washington’s Jayden Daniels, and Denver’s Bo Nix) and another going through a change at the position (the Raiders with either Gardner Minshew or Aidan O’Connell).
Five of the final seven games are against teams that made the playoffs last season (the Chiefs and Bucs here, at the Eagles, the Cowboys here, and a trip to Tampa).
The Week 18 game against the Falcons will be at a date and time to be determined. Select prime-time games are subject to change.
The Panthers are also celebrating 30 seasons this year, and are inviting fans to reminisce on the club’s foundations and traditions.
As an NFL expansion team, they hit the field in 1995.. As part of the 30th season celebration, the Panthers will sprinkle moments and memories of the past 30 years throughout this coming offseason and schedule.
Players will wear a patch on their game day jerseys honoring the 30 seasons. Additionally fans will notice tips to the 30 seasons throughout game entertainment, graphics and more during the season.
Fan Fest this year will be held in South Carolina at a date to be announced later. The offseason period, leading up to and culminating in Fan Fest, will invite the Panthers to return to 1995. Stories, interviews and experiences will give fans a glimpse into all that made that first season possible, special and memorable.
From unique modules to in-depth behind-the-scenes stories, everyone from lifelong Panthers fans to younger and newer fans, all will feel like they are a part of the 1995 season.
Following Fan Fest, celebrations around the 30 seasons will focus on highlights from throughout Panthers history, including two Super Bowl appearances, Hall-of-Fame and Hall-of-Honor careers, iconic games and more.
The Carolina Panthers contributed to this article.
VIDEO: Carolina Panthers to face the New York Giants in Germany next season
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