NOTES ON THE PACKERS' 2021 NFL SCHEDULE
The Green Bay Packers' 2021 NFL schedule will feature 17 regular-season games and three preseason games. It is highlighted by five prime-time contests (subject to flexible scheduling) on the original schedule for the eighth straight year (2014-21) and 10 games against 2020 playoff teams.
The Packers will open the season at the New Orleans Saints, marking the third straight year and the seventh time in the last nine seasons Green Bay has started the season on the road. Week 2 brings a division opponent at home for the fourth consecutive season, and for the second straight year it will be the Detroit Lions. The game will be on Monday Night Football and is the first of three home prime-time games against division opponents.
The Packers go back on the road in Week 3 as they travel to face the San Francisco 49ers on a Sunday night, marking the fourth consecutive season Green Bay has faced the 49ers in a prime-time contest and the third consecutive year on the road. Over the next two weeks, Green Bay will play the first of two back-to-backs against the AFC North, welcoming the Pittsburgh Steelers to Lambeau Field in Week 4 and traveling to Cincinnati to take on the Bengals in Week 5. The Cincinnati game will be the first of four road contests in five weeks for the Packers.
Week 6 brings a return to division play as Green Bay goes to Chicago and faces off with the Bears. The Packers then return to Lambeau for a Week 7 contest against the Washington Football Team before back-to-back road trips. Green Bay will visit the Arizona Cardinals on a Thursday night in Week 8 to finish an October slate that will see the Packers play five games for the first time since 2010, and then has a trip to Kansas City to play the Chiefs in Week 9.
Green Bay plays six of its final eight regular-season games against the NFC, starting with the Seattle Seahawks in Week 10 at home. After a trip to play the Minnesota Vikings in Week 11, Green Bay finishes the regular season with four of its last six games at home for the second straight year and the fourth time since 1940 (1969, 1977).
Green Bay hosts the Los Angeles Rams before a Week 13 bye, marking the seventh straight season the Packers will play at home heading into their bye week. It is the latest bye ever for Green Bay, and it is the fourth time since 1990 that the Packers have had a bye in Week 10 or later (Week 11 in 2019, Week 10 in 2012 and 2010).
It will be the first time since 2017 that Green Bay plays at home heading into the bye and coming out of the bye. The matchup versus Chicago on a Sunday night in Week 14 marks the 16th consecutive regular season that the Packers and Bears have squared off in a prime-time game. In Weeks 15-16, Green Bay will finish off its slate against the AFC North with a trip to face the Baltimore Ravens and then a home game on Christmas Day against the Cleveland Browns. It is just the third time the Packers will play on Christmas, having hosted the Bears in 2005 and 2011.
Green Bay will end the regular season with back-to-back NFC North games for the fourth time in the last six seasons. The Packers' last regular-season home game is slated for a Sunday night versus the Vikings in Week 17. For the fourth time in the last six years, Green Bay will end the regular season in Detroit. The game at the Lions is scheduled for Sunday, but the league schedule does not list Saturday games or a Sunday night game in Week 18, and three games with playoff implications will be moved to those time slots no later than six days prior to January 9.
The NFL and teams are preparing to play the 2021 season as scheduled and at full stadium capacity. The Packers plan to continue to utilize appropriate protocols and safety measures for all players, personnel and attendees based on the latest advice of medical and public-health officials, as well as in full compliance with current and future government regulations.
The Packers will be prepared to make adjustments as necessary in order to conduct games in as safe and efficient a manner as possible.
With the new three-game preseason schedule, the Packers will alternate between hosting one and two preseason games each year. In conjunction with the new schedule, the team is transitioning the charity component of its preseason games. In seasons with one preseason game, the matchup will be deemed the Green Bay Packers Give Back Game. This year, the Packers will continue to support Bishop's Charities and Midwest Shrine Association, traditional recipients of preseason game support, through the Packers Give Back Game, but the game now also will feature new benefiting charities from Green Bay and Southeastern Wisconsin. In seasons that feature two preseason home games, such as this year, the second home preseason game will be the USA Football Game, which will celebrate youth football.For ticket information, please visit www.packers.com/tickets. For a secure method to buy and sell tickets, the Packers encourage fans to use NFL Ticket Exchange at www.ticketmaster.com/packers.
All Packers games can be heard on the Packers Radio Network, which is made up of 49 stations in Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois and South Dakota. WTMJ has been broadcasting the team's games since November 1929 and continues its long-standing role as the flagship station of the Packers Radio Network. For a full listing of radio affiliates, go to www.packers.com.
Flagshipped by Milwaukee's WTMJ-TV, Packers preseason games are televised over an 18-station network throughout the state of Wisconsin, Upper Michigan, northeastern Minnesota, the Quad Cities, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Waterloo in Iowa, Peoria in Illinois, St. Louis in Missouri, Sioux Falls in South Dakota, Omaha in Nebraska and Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau in Alaska. For a list of affiliates, please go to www.packers.com.
"Flexible scheduling" will be used in Weeks 11-18. Additionally, in Weeks 5-10, flexible scheduling may be used in no more than two weeks. In Weeks 5-17, the schedule lists the games tentatively set for Sunday Night Football on NBC. Only Sunday afternoon games are eligible to be moved to Sunday night, in which case the tentatively scheduled Sunday night game would be moved to an afternoon start time. For Week 18, two Saturday games and the Sunday night game will be announced no later than six days prior to January 9. The schedule does not list Saturday games or a Sunday night game in Week 18, but games with playoff implications will be moved to those time slots. Flexible scheduling will not be applied to games airing on Thursday or Monday nights.
SPECIFIC GAME NOTES…
at New Orleans, Sept. 12, 3:25 p.m. CT (FOX) – It marks only the second season opener at New Orleans in team history (1977)…Playing at New Orleans in back-to-back seasons for only the second time (1986-87)…The winning team has scored 34-plus points in eight of the last 10 matchups, including 37 by the Packers last season in New Orleans…The Packers open with two of the first three games on the road for the second straight season.
vs. Detroit, Sept. 20, 7:15 p.m. CT (ESPN) – Home opener vs. Detroit for the second straight year…Second Monday Night Football game vs. Detroit at Lambeau in last three seasons (23-22 win by Green Bay in 2019)…On MNF for the 29th straight season…Including a 1994 playoff victory, the Packers are 27-3 against the Lions in the state of Wisconsin since 1992…The Packers have swept the season series each of the past two years…Green Bay scored 42 points in the meeting at Lambeau last season, the most it had scored at home against the Lions since posting 45 in 2011.
at San Francisco, Sept. 26, 7:20 p.m. CT (NBC) – Dating back to 1970, it is the first time the Packers have played at the 49ers in the regular season in three straight years…Fifth game (including playoffs) for Green Bay at Levi's Stadium (2015, 2019, 2019 NFC Championship, 2020)…Dating back to 1996, the Packers have a 12-3 mark against San Francisco during the regular season.
vs. Pittsburgh, Oct. 3, 3:25 p.m. CT (CBS) – First visit for Pittsburgh to Lambeau Field since 2013…Including Super Bowl XLV, six of the last seven games between the two have been decided by seven points or less…Each team has scored 25-plus points in each of the last four matchups, including the Super Bowl…It will be the earliest meeting between Green Bay and Pittsburgh since Sept. 27, 1992, a 17-3 win by the Packers at Lambeau.
at Cincinnati, Oct. 10, 12 p.m. CT (FOX) – It will be the sixth visit for Green Bay to Cincinnati and the first since 2013…Each of the last three games at the Bengals have been decided by seven points or less…The Packers are looking for their first victory in Cincinnati since 1998…The two teams last met in 2017, a 27-24 overtime victory by Green Bay at Lambeau Field...This will be the 14th matchup between the two teams and the seventh time they will play in October.
at Chicago, Oct. 17, 12 p.m. CT (FOX) – First October game between the teams at Soldier Field since 1997 (teams played in October 2002 in Champaign, Ill.)…Including a 2010 playoff victory at Chicago, Green Bay has won 22 of the last 27 meetings between the rivals at Soldier Field, including 10 of the last 11…Seven of the last nine games between the two clubs at Soldier Field have been decided by single digits…The Packers have scored 30-plus points in five of the last eight road games against the Bears, including 35 points last season.
vs. Washington Football Team, Oct. 24, 12 p.m. CT (FOX) – The Packers have won five straight games at Lambeau Field against Washington…The last time Green Bay lost at home to Washington was in 1988…The Packers are 10-5 against Washington at home…Overall, Green Bay has won three of the last five matchups between the two teams, including a 20-15 win at home in 2019.
at Arizona, Oct. 28, 7:20 p.m. CT (FOX/NFLN/Amazon) – It is the first prime-time regular-season game between the two teams…Green Bay is looking for its first win at the Cardinals since 2009…Including the postseason, two of the last three games between the two in Arizona have gone to overtime…Dating back to 1970, this will be only the second time (2006) the Packers and Cardinals have faced off in October.
at Kansas City, Nov. 7, 3:25 p.m. CT (FOX) – It is the second game at Arrowhead Stadium in the last three seasons, with the Packers winning, 31-24, in 2019…It marks the 13th regular-season game between the Packers and Chiefs…Green Bay has won three of the last four games against the Chiefs, including two of the last three at Kansas City.
vs. Seattle, Nov. 14, 3:25 p.m. CT (CBS) – Green Bay has won nine straight home games (including playoffs) against the Seahawks…It is the sixth regular-season meeting with Seattle in the last eight seasons…Including the postseason, it will be the ninth time the two teams have played in 10 seasons (since 2012)…Including the playoffs, Green Bay has won four of the last five games against Seattle, including the last meeting, a 28-23 victory in 2019 Divisional Playoff… Each of the last three matchups have been decided by eight points or less (including the postseason).
at Minnesota, Nov. 21, 12 p.m. CT (FOX) – Of the past 37 regular-season meetings between the teams, 24 of those games have been decided by seven points or less…The Packers have a 30-29 record in away games against the Vikings, including wins at Minnesota each of the last two seasons.
vs. L.A. Rams, Nov. 28, 3:25 p.m. CT (FOX) – It will be the latest regular-season visit for the Rams to Lambeau Field since 2004, a 45-17 victory by Green Bay on Nov. 29…Green Bay has won five of the last six regular-season matchups with the Rams and 12 of the last 17…Including the postseason, the Packers have won each of the last three home games against the Rams, outscoring them 80-31.
vs. Chicago, Dec. 12, 7:20 p.m. CT (NBC) – Green Bay has won 11 of the last 13 meetings against the Bears at Lambeau Field, including a 41-25 victory last season…The Packers have outscored Chicago, 361-195, in the last 13 home games, scoring 20-plus points in 11 of those contests…It is the 10th time in the last 11 years that the Packers-Bears game at Lambeau Field will be played in prime time…It is the Bears' second visit to Lambeau Field in December in the last three seasons (2019).
at Baltimore, Dec. 19, 12 p.m. CT (FOX) – The Packers last played at the Ravens in 2013, coming out victorious, 19-17…Green Bay played at Baltimore in Week 15 back in 2005…The Packers are 4-2 all-time against the Ravens, including a 1-1 mark at Baltimore…Four of the six matchups between the two teams have been decided by more than 12 points.
vs. Cleveland, Dec. 25, 3:30 p.m. CT (FOX / NFLN / Amazon) – Green Bay is 13-7 all-time against Cleveland, including 1-0 in the postseason…The Packers have won each of the last three matchups and five of the last six…The two teams last played in 2017, a 27-21 overtime victory by Green Bay in Cleveland…The Browns last played at Green Bay in 2013, a 31-13 Packers win…Packers play on a Saturday for the second straight season.
vs. Minnesota, Jan. 2, 7:20 p.m. CT (NBC) – Will be just the second January matchup for the Packers and Vikings during the regular season (2015)…Each of the last three matchups between the two in Green Bay have been decided by six points or less, including a tie in 2018…The Packers have won three of the last four meetings…Green Bay has scored 22-plus points in 12 of the last 15 home games vs. Minnesota.
at Detroit, Jan. 9, 12 p.m. CT (FOX) – Green Bay has won two of the last three regular-season finales at Detroit and is 3-3 overall in road games against the Lions to close out the regular season…The Packers have won two in a row at Detroit…Green Bay leads the regular-season series, 102-72-7 (.583), and have won both postseason contests the two clubs have played…Green Bay's 102 regular-season wins over the Lions are the most it has against any team…The Packers swept the season series in 2020 for the second straight year and for the 10th time in the last 17 seasons.
— Green Bay Packers
