KC Chiefs Could Face Patriots on Primetime in Week One

The KC Chiefs finished the 2016 season with a 12-4 record and an AFC West title. Even though they exited the playoffs early once again, there’s no doubt in anyone’s minds that the Chiefs will be contenders in 2017.

As we all know by this point, the New England Patriots won Super Bowl LI in comeback fashion. With that Super Bowl win, the Patriots will be opening up the 2017 NFL regular season on Thursday Night Football on NBC.

When looking at New England’s schedule for the 2017 season, only two games really stand out as far as “primetime caliber” games. One of those games, which is the one I feel like will get picked, is against the Atlanta Falcons at Gillette Stadium.

The Falcons are the team that the Patriots beat in Super Bowl LI and with that insane comeback, one would have to think this would be the match-up that the NFL would choose to open up the season.

The only other viable option would be the Patriots hosting our very own Kansas City Chiefs.

That’s right. The Chiefs are scheduled to play the New England Patriots in 2017 and this would be a rematch of the AFC Divisional Round in the 2015 season. Sure, that’s not as big of a buildup as “Super Bowl Rematch”, but you get the idea.

The Chiefs will definitely be playing their first game of the season on the road regardless, as the Kansas City Royals are scheduled to be at Kauffman Stadium during the NFL’s opening weekend. Either way, the Chiefs will be on the road, so why not put them on that Thursday night?

Not getting the Thursday night opener wouldn’t necessarily be an insult to Chiefs fans, as Super Bowl rematches the next year don’t happen all that often.

Should the Chiefs get picked to play on the 2017 series opener, it’d be bittersweet for Chiefs Kingdom. On the one hand, our team would be on national television!

That’s great considering this team rarely got any attention for years and now they’re finally being recognized for their talents.

On the other hand, this more than likely would stem in an automatic loss for the KC Chiefs. Unless Roger Goodell finds a reason to suspend Tom Brady again, it’s unlikely that the Chiefs would be able to go into Foxborough in the first game of the season and come out victorious.

Even the biggest Chiefs fans aren’t banking on their boys to win that one, and it’s okay. Brady is the best quarterback of all-time and the Patriots are just always good.

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At the end of the day, I’m sure the league will choose to put the Super Bowl LI rematch on that first Thursday night. It’d be the second straight year that this was the case, as the Broncos and Panthers opened things up for NFL fans last season after competing in Super Bowl 50.

Kevin Patra of NFL.com agrees with me on the Patriots and Falcons being the strongest choice as the NFL season opener, stating,

"This is the only realistic option for NFL Kickoff. Book your hotels now."

He did, however, list the Chiefs as the second choice for the primetime slot.

"Coach Andy Reid’s squad doesn’t boast offensive firepower (or a sexy quarterback to market alongside Brady), but the back-to-back playoff contenders make for a good story after winning the AFC West."

Next: Ten Best Chiefs Season Openers in Franchise History

Not getting the Thursday night opener wouldn’t necessarily be an insult to Chiefs fans, as Super Bowl rematches the next year don’t happen all that often. The last two years have just happened to work out that the two representatives in the Super Bowl are in divisions that play each other the following season.

What do you think, Chiefs fans? Would you want the Kansas City Chiefs to play their season opener against the New England Patriots?

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