Seahawks 2017 schedule: Seattle likely going to start next season on the road

For more than a decade, one of the “perks” for winning the Super Bowl is that you get to begin the following NFL regular season with a Thursday night home game. The lone exception to this tradition is the 2013 Baltimore Ravens, who had a scheduling conflict with the Baltimore Orioles, so their “reward” was getting mauled 49-27 at the Denver Broncos on opening night.

Unfortunately, there will be no Super Bowl banner raised on Thursday, September 7th at CenturyLink Field. The NFL’s full schedule release is still a good three months away, but it’s a near certainty that Seattle will be opening their season on the road. Before you ask why, there’s a simple explanation for all of this:

The Sounders are playing at home on Sunday, September 10th.

That’s it. Your defending MLS Cup champions are up against the LA Galaxy at 6 PM PT, and to add to that, the Mariners have a game vs. the Astros at Safeco Field at 1:10 PM PT, so there’s no chance for the Seahawks. If you want a home game for week 1, your only bet is the 7:10 PM PT kickoff on Monday Night Football, but Seattle has never hosted the late-game MNF doubleheader, and for as long as I’m living on the east coast, I’m actively rooting against this. The good news is that both the M’s and Sounders are away for September 17th, so the Seahawks should be at home for week 2.

There is a chance the Seahawks could actually be playing on opening night, but that would require the Green Bay Packers to win the Super Bowl. When you look at Green Bay’s home opponents (Chicago, Detroit, Minnesota, Cincinnati, Baltimore, New Orleans, Tampa Bay, Seattle), you have to like the Seahawks’ chances to be chosen as the curtain-raising opponents. In fact, Seattle and Detroit are the only playoff teams from this season who will be traveling to Lambeau Field next season. Of course, if Green Bay doesn’t win it all, then this all becomes moot, but it’s something to think about. It certainly beats having to play Green Bay in December again.

Here’s the full list of scheduling conflicts concerning the Mariners and Sounders, which would otherwise force the Seahawks to play on the road, or play a home game on Monday or Thursday night (assuming no bye week). So in all likelihood, it may be a slightly road-heavy start to next season.

Sounders conflicts

Week 1 (Sunday, September 10th)
Week 6 (Sunday, October 15th)
Week 7 (Sunday, October 22nd)

Mariners conflicts

Week 1 (Sunday, September 10th)
Week 3 (Sunday, September 24th)

And in case you need a reminder, here’s the list of opponents the Seahawks will face in 2017:

Home: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Atlanta Falcons

Away: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, Green Bay Packers