The top 10 NFL games to watch during the 2025 season

With apologies to the NFL’s biggest international schedule of all time and its early-week rollout, the games that football fans really need to see will be played on American soil.

And they were announced Wednesday as part of the release of every team’s full schedule.

Time to start picking a winner for all 272 games and projecting playoff teams.

Keeping in mind playoff rematches, marquee players facing their old teams and star quarterback duels, here are 10 must-see matchups (excluding Jets and Giants games) for the 2025 season.

Alas, it would be easier to pick 10 if free agent Aaron Rodgers would just make up his mind on his future and the Browns would decide soon whether rookie Shedeur Sanders is going to be a starter with grudges to bury, but there’s still plenty to entertain.

Eagles at Chiefs, Week 2

After the Chiefs beat the Eagles in the 2023 Super Bowl, the Eagles came back the next season and beat the Chiefs. This time, it will be the Chiefs looking to exact a small measure of revenge after their loss to the Eagles in this past Super Bowl. Andy Reid is the winningest coach in both franchises’ histories.

Vikings at Seahawks, Week 13

It would be better if this game were in Minnesota, but it’s still Sam Darnold’s chance to make the Vikings regret letting him leave for Seattle after a Pro Bowl season in which he went 14-3. The Vikings chose J.J. McCarthy — who has never played in an NFL game and is coming off of two knee surgeries — over keeping Darnold.

Packers at Steelers, Week 8

Maybe this game will be Rodgers’ first against the franchise he led for 18 seasons and the successor (Jordan Love) he mentored. If he ever signs with the sitting-on-their-hands Steelers, that is. The game would be more emotional if played at Lambeau Field, but it is still a rare matchup between two flagship franchises.

Broncos at Commanders, Week 13

With apologies to Caleb Williams and Drake Maye, the best two rookie quarterbacks last season were Bo Nix and Jayden Daniels. This is their first NFL meeting — in a long-ago Super Bowl rematch of two past-due upstart teams. Daniels particularly could become one of the NFL’s main attractions for a long time.

Ravens at Bills, Week 1

The Associated Press voted Lamar Jackson as a First-Team All-Pro over Josh Allen, but gave Allen his first MVP instead of Jackson’s third. Either way, this is two of the NFL’s four Tier I quarterbacks squaring off in a playoff rematch that was decided when the Ravens’ Mark Andrews dropped a would-be game-tying two-point conversion.

Patriots at Titans, Week 7

See the quarterback who was atop most 2025 draft boards (Titans No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward) face off against the head coach (Mike Vrabel) who was the most sought-after for vacancies this offseason. It’s also Vrabel’s return to Nissan Stadium after going 54-45 over six seasons as Titans head coach before his surprising ouster in 2023.

Lions at Eagles, Week 11

This past season’s NFC Championship Game that never happened. It would’ve been played in Detroit, but the Commanders were spoilers. Now it’s the defending Super Bowl champions hosting their primary NFC threat. What will the Lions look like this year with two new coordinators? The Eagles faced that problem in 2023.

Chiefs at Bills, Week 9

You could argue Chiefs-Chargers in Week 1 in Brazil, Chiefs-Broncos on Christmas or Chiefs-Lions in a possible Super Bowl preview as must-see. But Chiefs-Bills is the NFL’s premier rivalry right now. Josh Allen has beaten Patrick Mahomes in four straight regular seasons, but Mahomes is 3-0 against Allen in the playoffs … with another meeting on tap in January?

Chargers at Raiders, Week 2

Every game in the AFC West this season is a clash of coaching titans. The unretired Pete Carroll vs. Jim Harbaugh has roots in the old Pac-12 (USC v. Stanford) and in high-stakes NFC West battles (Seahawks vs. 49ers). The top two rookie running backs (Ashton Jeanty and Omarion Hampton) will be featured for fantasy football purposes. 

Jaguars at Bengals, Week 2

The Bengals had the NFL’s leading passer, receiver and pass rusher (sacks) last season and somehow still missed the playoffs. They are a dark horse Super Bowl contender. Can new Jaguars coach Liam Coen finally get the most out of “can’t-miss” Trevor Lawrence? A good game to check in on rookie Travis Hunter’s unprecedented two-way workload.