Ravens Schedule Release: Brother Rivalry, Christmas Day Game

Marquee matchups pit the Ravens against the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills, both perennial Super Bowl contenders. The Ravens head coach will also take on his brother on national TV.

The Ravens have the second-hardest schedule based on their opponents’ records from last year, FOX Sports said. Only the Cleveland Browns have a more challenging slate. A late bye week in Week 14 adds even more difficulty.

Baltimore’s trials start immediately with a Week 1 trip to Kansas City to face the defending Super Bowl champs. The Thursday, Sept. 9 nighttime showdown is the NFL’s first game of the season. It will also be a rematch of last season’s AFC Championship game, where the Chiefs defeated the Ravens 17-10 in Baltimore.

The Chiefs game is one of five primetime dates for the Ravens. The others are:

• Week 4: Hosting the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, Sept. 29
• Week 7: Visiting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday, Oct. 21
• Week 10: Hosting the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday, Nov. 7
• Week 12: Visiting the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday, Nov. 25

The Los Angeles game will pit Ravens head coach John Harbaugh against his younger brother, Jim Harbaugh. Jim is in his first year coaching the Chargers. John’s Ravens defeated Jim’s 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII when Jim was still the head coach of San Francisco. After spending the last nine years coaching Michigan’s college football team, Jim is back in the NFL seeking revenge.

A Christmas afternoon trip to the Houston Texans at 4:30 p.m. will serve as another quasi-primetime game on Wednesday in Week 17.

Baltimore doesn’t play on Thanksgiving this year.

The Ravens will host the Browns in the regular season finale, but the date and time are still to be determined.

Here is the full Ravens schedule:

PRESEASON WEEK 1 · Fri 08/09 · 7:30 PM EDT