Aaron Rodgers will be facing a familiar opponent, albeit in a different uniform and in a new location.
Rodgers and the New York Jets will kick off this year’s slate of games in London, where they will be the visiting team against the Minnesota Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct. 6 (the Jets are early 3.5-point favorites in that game at DraftKings Sportsbook).
The NFL announced the four international games in London and Germany on Wednesday morning before the full slate is released later in the day.
Rodgers went 17-11-1 against the Vikings when he was with the Green Bay Packers. The four-time NFL MVP was traded to the Jets last year, but tore his left Achilles tendon on the first series of last year’s opener against the Buffalo Bills.
Rodgers is on track to return to practice without limitations once the Jets begin voluntary spring sessions next week. The league announced on Tuesday that the Jets would open the season on “Monday Night Football” at NFC champion San Francisco on Sept. 9 (S.F. is 5.5-point favorites).
The Jacksonville Jaguars will spend back-to-back weeks in London for the second straight year and face two of this year’s top three quarterbacks that were taken in the NFL draft. The Jaguars will visit top draft pick Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct. 13 (Chicago is 0.5-point favorite) and then host the New England Patriots, who took Drake Maye third, at Wembley Stadium on Oct. 20 (Jacksonville is 6-point favorites).
This will be the 10th time the Jaguars host a game at Wembley.
The Carolina Panthers will host the New York Giants in Germany on Nov. 10 at Allianz Arena in Munich (New York is a 0.5-point favorite). The two teams executed a major trade over the offseason, with the Panthers sending Brian Burns to the Giants for draft capital.
With the four international games, the NFL has announced 10 of its 272 regular-season games for the upcoming season. It will begin on Sept. 5 when the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs host the Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 5 in a rematch of last season’s AFC title game.
Other Week 1 games include the Philadelphia Eagles hosting the Green Bay Packers in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Sept. 6 (the Eagles are 1.5-point favorites), and the Dallas Cowboys visiting the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 8, which will serve as Tom Brady’s debut with FOX Sports (Cleveland is a 1-point favorite).
Week 2’s announced games so far have the Miami Dolphins hosting the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 12 (Miami is a 1-point favorite) and the Cincinnati Bengals at the Chiefs on Sept. 15 (the Chiefs are 4-point favorites).
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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