Report: Patriots to open season vs. Chiefs
The New England Patriots will begin their Super Bowl title defense against the Kansas City Chiefs, Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald reports, citing a source.
As the winners of Super Bowl LI, the Patriots will host the first game of the 2017 regular season and unveil their new championship banner on the Thursday after Labor Day.
The entire NFL schedule will be released Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET.
The Patriots' list of 2017 opponents is chock-full of teams that would make for an entertaining opening-night matchup, including the team they defeated for the Lombardi Trophy: the Atlanta Falcons. It appears the league's schedule makers opted instead to keep that marquee matchup for a prime time spotlight later in the season.
The Chiefs were one win away from meeting the Patriots in the AFC Championship game. Kansas City fell to Pittsburgh 18-16 in the divisional round of the 2016 playoffs, however, and the Patriots got past the Steelers by a 36-17 score.
The Patriots and Chiefs last met in the divisional round of the 2015 playoffs when New England won 27-20. Their last regular-season meeting came in 2014 when Kansas City ran roughshod over Brady and Co. to the tune of 41-14.