NFL releases Seahawks’ 2025 schedule

A division rival to begin the season again.

Facing teams starting over with new quarterbacks in early weeks. Again.

Finishing on the road. Again.

Four prime-time games again.

Playing against former Seahawk DK Metcalf right away. Plus, an optimally placed bye week.

Those are the highlights of the Seahawks’ 2025 schedule the team and NFL released Wednesday.

The season opener is at home, for the fourth straight year. It’s against the San Francisco 49ers Sunday, Sept. 7. This will be the second time in three years Seattle’s first game is against an NFC West foe at Lumen Field.

Seattle-San Francisco is a regional telecast to a relatively small Fox network audience at the same time most of the nation watches the marquee Lions at Packers at the same time in week one on CBS. It shows how the Seahawks and 49ers are coming off substandard years. Seattle won 10 games in 2024 yet missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season. San Francisco lost 11 games and finished last in the division amid tons of injuries.

In week two, the Seahawks play at Pittsburgh. The game the afternoon of Sunday, Sept. 14 (10 a.m. Seattle time) is the Steelers’ home opener — and the first home game for Metcalf in Pittsburgh. The Seahawks traded their star wide receiver to the Steelers in March, after his request to leave Seattle.

The Steelers are starting over at quarterback, after letting Russell Wilson’s one-year contract expire. Pittsburgh is waiting for former league MVP Aaron Rodgers to decide if he wants to play for them at age 41 in 2025.

Then the Seahawks host New Orleans, Sunday, Sept. 21. The Saints are also starting over at quarterback in the wake of Derek Carr announcing his retirement last week because of a shoulder injury. Rookie second-round draft choice Tyler Shough could be the Saints’ starter in Seattle in week three.

Last season, new coach Mike Macdonald began his Seattle tenure with a soft landing. He and his new defense played rookie Bo Nix in his first NFL game in Seattle’s 2024 opener against Denver. In week two last year, the Seahawks played at New England against journeyman QB Jacoby Brissett. Brissett started that game because the Patriots didn’t think rookie Drake Maye was ready yet to start.

That’s how the 2024 Seahawks began 2-0.

Week four, the Seahawks have their first of four prime-time national TV games, the same number they had in 2024 and ‘23: at Arizona. That will bring up bad memories for Seattle. On a Thursday night coming off a game four days earlier in 2017, the Seahawks lost Richard Sherman to a torn Achilles that ended his tenure with the team. They lost Kam Chancellor to a career-ending neck injury that night, too.

After the game, battered Seahawks were laying across the floor of the locker room. Many were taking IVs. Wide receiver Doug Baldwin came out of the locker room while reporters were waiting to enter it and declared to The News Tribune and others of Thursday games after Sunday games: “This s*** should be illegal. It is not OK. It’s not OK. You can quote me on that.”

The Seahawks’ other primetime games in 2025 are home against the Houston Texans on Monday night in week seven (a 7 p.m. Seattle time kickoff as part of an ESPN TV doubleheader that night), at Washington on a Sunday night in week nine plus home against the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night in week 16.

The league’s flex-scheduling system allows for primetime games to change later in the season. So the Seahawks ultimately could have more or fewer than the four featured night games.

Seattle’s bye is in week eight. That’s nearly exactly midway through the 17-game regular season.

Players and coaches love having the only week off of their season right in the middle of it, to avoid double-digit games without a break or getting a week off too early and having 10-plus games in a row to end a season.

Seattle’s season ends with road games at Carolina in week 17 the Sunday three days after Christmas and San Francisco in week 18, either Jan. 3 or 4.

Five of the Seahawks’ final eight games in the 2025 season are on the road: at the defending NFC West-champion Rams and at Tennessee with new number-one overall rookie draft pick Cam Ward at quarterback back to back in weeks 11 and 12; at Michael Penix Jr. and Atlanta in week 14; then at the Panthers and 49ers to end the season.

During that stretch, the Seahawks play three road games in four weeks. The only home game in that span from late November into mid-December: Nov. 30 against Minnesota at Lumen Field.

That will be new Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold’s first game against his former team since leaving the Vikings for a three-year, $100.5 million free-agent deal with Seattle this spring following his 14-win season leading them in 2024.

In the preseason, the Seahawks will host former coach Pete Carroll and his Las Vegas Raiders in mid-August, at a date and time to be announced. Seattle will also host the Kansas City Chiefs then play at the Green Bay Packers in the third and final preseason game.

Seahawks 2025 schedule

HOME GAMES in CAPS. All times local.

Sunday, Sept. 7: SAN FRANCISCO, 1:05 p.m, Fox

Sunday, Sept. 14: at Pittsburgh, 10 a.m., Fox

Sunday, Sept. 21: NEW ORLEANS, 1:05 p.m., CBS

Thursday, Sept. 25: at Arizona, 5:15 p.m., Amazon Prime

Sunday, Oct. 5: TAMPA BAY, 1:05 p.m., CBS

Sunday, Oct. 12: at Jacksonville, 10 a.m., Fox

Monday, Oct. 20: HOUSTON, 7 p.m., ESPN+

Sunday, Oct. 27: Bye week

Sunday, Nov. 2: at Washington, 5:20 p.m., NBC

Sunday, Nov. 9: ARIZONA, 1:05 p.m., CBS