The Birds will open the season in Brazil when they play the Green Bay Packers on Friday, September 6 in São Paulo
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Football is almost back Philadelphia Eagles fans!
The NFL released its 2024 schedule Wednesday night. The Eagles' slate features several prime-time matchups and a home opener at Lincoln Financial Field during Week 2.
As we already knew, the Birds will kick off the season against the Green Bay Packers on Friday, September 6, in São Paulo, Brazil. This will be the NFL's first Friday game on opening weekend in more than 50 years.
RB Saquon Barkley will face his former team the New York Giants during Week 7.
Check out the full schedule below:
Preseason
Regular Season
RELATED: Eagles legend Jason Kelce officially joins ESPN's 'Monday Night Countdown'
ESPN analyst Sal Paolantonio joined Action News Mornings live to break down the Eagles' schedule, where we highlight the biggest matchups on the calendar and the Birds' chances of redeeming themselves this season.
ALSO SEE: List of 2024 season opponents ahead of NFL schedule release
With the addition of Running back Saquon Barkley, the Eagles have assembled arguably the best skill position group in team history.
He joins a loaded offense that also features Jalen Hurts, receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, and tight end Dallas Goedert.
There is certainly risk in handing Barkley a three-year, $37.75 million contract -- he's entering his seventh NFL season and has dealt with his share of injuries -- but Philadelphia believes there is still untapped potential.
"He exhibited a very special skill set, both in the running and the passing game, that we think certainly can be maximized by being on a team with better skill positions, quarterback, offensive line," team CEO Jeffrey Lurie said.
Sort out the starting secondary.
The Eagles selected defensive backs Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean in the first two rounds of April's draft. Both have a chance to start right away (Mitchell is an outside corner, while DeJean is multifunctional and could fill the need at nickel) but will need to attack the learning curve this summer.
It's an interesting mix at cornerback with a couple of older vets in Darius Slay (33) and James Bradberry (31 in August) paired with a lot of youth.
On offense, the Eagles need to fill the vacancy at right guard created when Cam Jurgens moved to center to replace All-Pro Jason Kelce, who retired this offseason. Second-year player Tyler Steen appears to be the front-runner heading into camp.
Hurts took a step back last season after a near-MVP campaign in 2022.
The trio of Nick Sirianni, offensive coordinator Brian Johnson and Hurts struggled to sync up for much of the season -- a disconnect that came to light during the team's 1-6 slide to end the campaign.
Johnson was replaced by Kellen Moore in an effort to revitalize the offense.
Hurts will have to learn the revamped scheme and overcome the loss of Kelce, who was instrumental in setting protections and problem-solving up front. But Hurts is surrounded by a ton of talent and has shown that he can play at a high level.
Netflix and the NFL announced a three-year deal Wednesday to stream games on Christmas Day.
The streaming giant will carry two games this year and at least one game in 2025 and '26. Netflix announced during a presentation to advertisers that it will have defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City at Pittsburgh followed by Baltimore at Houston.
"Last year, we decided to take a big bet on live - tapping into massive fandoms across comedy, reality TV, sports and more," Bela Bajaria, Netflix's chief content officer, said in a statement. "There are no live annual events, sports or otherwise, that compare with the audiences NFL football attracts. We're so excited that the NFL's Christmas Day games will be only on Netflix."