NFL Schedule Release: Top 10 matchups of 2022 season

By Eric D. Williams
FOX Sports NFL Writer

An offseason of historic movement for some of the top players in the NFL should make for an entertaining slate of games in the 2022 regular season.

The NFL announced the full schedule Thursday, starting with the defending champion Los Angeles Rams hosting the Buffalo Bills in a nationally televised Thursday Night Football game to kick off the season.

Along with that contest, here are nine others that make our list of the top 10 games for the upcoming season.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals
Sunday, Sept. 11 (1 p.m. ET, CBS)

Fresh off a Super Bowl appearance last season, ultra-talented quarterback Joe Burrow and the Bengals will look to return to the big game. But they will have to get past Mike Tomlin’s Steelers in the AFC North. With longtime signal-caller Ben Roethlisberger retired, the Steelers will have a new quarterback leading them. Will that be free-agent addition Mitchell Trubisky or first-round draft pick Kenny Pickett?

9. Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers
Sunday, Nov. 13 (4:25 p.m. ET, FOX)

Dallas coach Mike McCarthy returns to his old stomping grounds of Lambeau Field to take on his former team. McCarthy is under intense pressure after his team’s disappointing first-round exit from the playoffs last season. The Cowboys face another team with high expectations in Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, who must figure out how to replace the production of traded WR Davante Adams.

8. Cleveland Browns at Houston Texans
Sunday, Dec. 4 (1 p.m. ET, CBS)

Depending on what happens in terms of potential discipline from the league, this contest could mark the first time Deshaun Watson faces his former team after his blockbuster offseason trade to the Browns. Cleveland also must resolve the situation with Baker Mayfield, who remains on the roster.

7. Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs
Sunday, Oct. 16 (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS)

This is a reprisal of last season’s dazzling playoff game that led to changes to the overtime rule in the postseason. It also offers another peek at the evolution of two of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the NFL, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen.

6. Los Angeles Rams at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sunday, Nov. 6 (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS)

The Rams and Bucs meet in a replay of what we thought was the final game of Tom Brady’s storied career. Of course, that changed when Brady announced he was unretiring and returning to Tampa Bay. The Rams have defeated the Bucs in their past three matchups and own a 19-9 edge in the all-time series, including postseason.

5. Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks
Week 18 (TBD)

After an unceremonious departure from his former team, future Hall of Famer Bobby Wagner heads back to Seattle to lock horns with the Seahawks. Wagner said it’s nothing personal — but the Seahawks will see him every time they play. No doubt Seattle’s running backs will see him the most; the linebacker has finished with at least 100 tackles in 10 straight NFL seasons.

4. New England Patriots at Las Vegas Raiders
Sunday, Dec. 18 (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC)

Patriots coach Bill Belichick takes on protégé Josh McDaniels for the first time as head coach of the Silver and Black. The two met one time before, when McDaniels was coaching the Denver Broncos. That meeting, in Week 5 of the 2009 season, resulted in a 20-17 overtime win for Denver. No doubt Belichick hasn't forgotten.

3. Buffalo Bills at Los Angeles Rams
Thursday, Sept. 8 (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC)

In what could be a preview of this season’s Super Bowl, the Rams host the Bills to open the season and celebrate their title with the fans at SoFi Stadium. Buffalo's Von Miller matches up with the Rams for the first time with his new team, and Wagner suits up in his native L.A. for the first time with the hometown team.

2. Denver Broncos at Seattle Seahawks
Monday, Sept. 12 (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC)

Russell Wilson returns to the Pacific Northwest to battle his former team for the first time. The best quarterback in Seahawks history and the only one to lead the franchise to a Super Bowl victory, Wilson was shipped to Denver in a blockbuster offseason trade. Embattled QB Drew Lock, part of the Wilson deal, will try to get off to a good start against his former team. 

1. Green Bay Packers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sunday, Sept. 25 (4:25 p.m. ET, FOX)

Rodgers and Brady have combined for 139,880 passing yards and 382 regular-season wins. They'll face off for likely the final time in their NFL careers — unless the Packers and Bucs meet in the postseason. Brady holds a 3-1 edge in the all-time series between the two greybeards, including a 31-26 victory in the NFC championship game two seasons ago.

Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.