CHARLOTTE — The Carolina Panthers 2024 schedule has officially been released.
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 team opens with a road game against divisional opponent, going to New Orleans in Week 1. The home opener is here in Week 2 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 on the road. In Week 5, the last two No. 1 overall picks will face off, as Bryce Youngand 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.
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. 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.
Christine Lake is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. With an extensive background in sports journalism, he covers everything from major league championships to grassroots sports events. When she’s not on the field or at the stadium, you’ll find Christine coaching youth sports teams.
