Caleb Harris
Various pillars of NFL the offseason came and went: the Scouting Combine, the start of free agency, the 2024 NFL Draft. Now, all eyes are on the next schedule release, with fans of all 32 teams anxiously awaiting news of when and where their favorite teams will play this fall. But when, exactly, will the NFL announce its 2024 roster?
Here’s everything you need to know:
When will the 2024 schedule be released?
At this time, there is no official word from the NFL on when the schedule will be released other than that it will be arriving “soon” in May. Many have pointed to May 9 as a likely target, considering the NFL revealed each of its final three regular-season schedules (2021-2023) on the second Thursday in May, or about two weeks after the draft. But signs now point to a potentially later date.
Is the 2024 release being delayed?
You can’t delay something that was never specifically announced, so technically no. But if we assume the league originally intended to release the schedule on the second Thursday in May, as has been the case the past three years, then yes, it looks like it could be pushed back. According to NBC Sports, signs point to the week of May 13-17 as most likely. The only confirmation we have from the NFL is that this will happen before the end of the month.
So… when will this actually happen?
The first likely possibility is May 9, the originally scheduled release date. Common sense says that the NFL would have already promoted this if it were confirmed, but recent history it also tells us that the league has been giving gradually less advance notice for the release of the schedule; Compared to 2021, when the NFL announced the release of its schedule 11 days before actually airing the teams’ schedules, 2023 saw the NFL announce its release date just three days earlier. Some fans on X (formerly Twitter) also stated that certain teams, such as the New Orleans Saints, season ticket holders emailed alerting them to a release on Thursday, May 9th.
As NBC Sports speculates, the week of May 13-17 is also more likely than the week leading up to Memorial Day weekend, as that would theoretically maximize potential viewership. Therefore, it is likely that the launch will still take place in the next week and a half.
Why is there less clarity on the release date?
Again, this could simply be a continuation of the NFL’s trend toward more abrupt releases, with each of the final three releases receiving less notice. But there may be other logistical hurdles this year. For one, the NFL is hosting its first South American contest early in the schedule, sending the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles to Brazil for a Week 1 contest on Friday night. But these types of tentpole events are often coordinated well in advance. NBC Sports also speculated that the NFL could soon introduce a new multi-day programming release, which could be the reason for the perceived delay.
