The 2023 NFL schedule was released on Thursday night, and the New Orleans Saints now know who they will be playing during the regular season. With the NFL schedule release, we are officially one step closer to the start of the 2023 season. The first seven of 11 games to start off the season will be on the road for the Saints, but their schedule currently sits at 31st in the league in overall strength of schedule. The black and gold will be hoping to bounce back from a 7-10 season that resulted in the Saints missing the playoffs in back-to-back years. The offseason additions have raised the expectations for this team heading into the 2023 season, and they will now embark on a 17-game stretch. Here is the 2023 regular season schedule for the New Orleans Saints:

New Orleans Saints 2023 Schedule:

Alvin Kamara warming up prior to facing off against the Browns

Saints RB Alvin Kamara (41) – Nick Cammett/Getty Images

Week 1: September 10th vs. Tennessee Titans (Noon on CBS)

Week 2: September 18th @ Carolina Panthers (Monday Night Football-6:15 on ESPN)

Week 3: September 24th @ Green Bay Packers (Noon on FOX)

Week 4: October 1st vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Noon on FOX)

Week 5: October 8th @ New England Patriots (Noon on CBS)

Week 6: October 15th @ Houston Texans (Noon on FOX)

Week 7: October 19th vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (Thursday Night Football-7:15 on Prime Video)

Week 8: October 29th @ Indianapolis Colts (Noon on FOX)

Week 9: November 5th vs. Chicago Bears (Noon on CBS)

Week 10: November 12th @ Minnesota Vikings (Noon on FOX)

Week 11: BYE

Week 12: November 26th @ Atlanta Falcons (Noon on FOX)

Week 13: December 3rd vs. Detroit Lions (Noon on FOX)

Week 14: December 10th vs. Carolina Panthers (Noon on FOX)

Week 15: December 17th vs. New York Giants (Noon on FOX)

Week 16: December 21st @ Los Angeles Rams (Thursday Night Football-7:15 on Prime Video)

Week 17: December 31st @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Noon on FOX)

Week 18: TBD vs. Atlanta Falcons (TBD)

New Orleans Saints Schedule Key Takeaways:

New Orleans CB Paulson Adebo lines up against the Panthers

Saints CB Paulson Adebo (29) – Derick Hingle/AP Photo

The Saints will open the regular season for the first time since the 2020 season in Caesar’s Superdome against the Titans. The 2023 regular season schedule features three prime-time games, with two of those being on Thursday Night Football. New Orleans’ lone appearance on Monday Night Football will come in week two when they take on the Panthers.  The other primetime games that the Saints are featured in are week seven against the Jaguars and week 16 against the Rams. The Saints are well-positioned to make a run at the NFC South division title, which they last won in 2020.

After New Orleans faces off against two back-to-back NFC South opponents in weeks two and three, the Saints will start a stretch of facing four straight AFC opponents. The star of the schedule can be a tone-setter for New Orleans, as four of the team’s first six games are on the road. The schedule is set up for the Saints to take charge of a winnable NFC South, as New Orleans faces just four teams who finished above .500 last year. Saints fans have to be happy to see early road trips to Green Bay and New England to avoid the frigid temperature that will come at the end of the year.

Minnesota and Green Bay have to stick out as the toughest road test for the Saints. On the other hand, the Jaguars and Lions will be tricky tests for New Orleans at home. The Jaguars are coming off a postseason appearance, and the Lions look to be one of the trendy picks to claim the NFC North division title. New Orleans won’t have to travel far as they avoided playing overseas like they did last year against the Vikings.

The Saints rank at the bottom of the league in miles traveled during the 2023 season (14,490). Another note is that the bye week for the Saints will once again come later in the year as it falls on week 11 in 2023 compared to week 14 during the 2022 season. The focus for New Orleans down the stretch will be to finish strong after the bye week, and having a home stretch will certainly help in reaching that goal.