It has been known for a while who the Buffalo Bills will play during the 2021 regular season, but now we know when each game will take place this year.
The Bills officially released their 2021 regular season schedule on Wednesday as part of the league-wide schedule release. The team also announced their three-game preseason schedule, which is set to get underway on Sunday, Aug. 8 against the Detroit Lions.
Here is a look at the Bills' complete schedule for the 2021 season:
PRESEASON:
Week 1: Friday, Aug. 13 at Detroit Lions - 7 p.m. ET (WIVB)
Week 2: Saturday, Aug. 21 at Chicago Bears - 1 p.m. ET (WIVB)
Week 3: Saturday, Aug. 28 vs. Green Bay Packers - 1 p.m. ET (WIVB)
REGULAR SEASON:
Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 12 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers - 1 p.m. ET (CBS)
Week 2: Sunday, September 19 at Miami Dolphins - 1 p.m. ET (FOX)
Week 3: Sunday, Sept. 26 vs. Washington Football Team - 1 p.m. ET (FOX)
Week 4: Sunday, Oct. 3 vs. Houston Texans - 1 p.m. ET (CBS)
Week 5: Sunday, Oct. 10 at Kansas City Chiefs - 8:20 p.m. ET (NBC)
Week 6: Monday, Oct. 18 at Tennessee Titans - 8:15 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Week 7: BYE WEEK
Week 8: Sunday, Oct. 31 vs. Miami Dolphins - 1 p.m. ET (CBS)
Week 9: Sunday, Nov. 7 at Jacksonville Jaguars - 1 p.m. EST (CBS)
Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 14 at New York Jets - 1 p.m. EST (CBS)
Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 21 vs. Indianapolis Colts - 1 p.m. EST (CBS)
Week 12: Thursday, Nov. 25 at New Orleans Saints - 8:20 p.m. EST (NBC)
Week 13: Monday, Dec. 6 vs. New England Patriots - 8:15 p.m. EST (ESPN)
Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 12 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - 4:25 p.m. EST (CBS)
Week 15: Sat. Dec. 18/Sun. Dec. 19 vs. Carolina Panthers - TBD
Week 16: Sunday, Dec. 26 at New England Patriots - 1 p.m. EST (CBS)
Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 2 vs. Atlanta Falcons - 1 p.m. EST (FOX)
Week 18: Sunday, Jan. 9 vs. New York Jets - 1 p.m. EST (CBS)
As was announced Wednesday morning, the Bills will open the 2021 regular season on Sunday, Sept. 12 against the Steelers with a 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park. It will be the 12th-straight year the Bills will open a season in the 1 p.m. ET window, while it's also the second-straight year Buffalo will kick off the season at home.
The following week will see Buffalo head out on the road for the first time against their AFC East rival in the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. It will be the second-straight season the Bills play the Dolphins on the road in Week 2, with Buffalo earning a 31-28 win in 2020.
After a pair of home games in Weeks 3 and 4 against the Washington Football Team and Texans, respectively, the Bills will get a shot to avenge their loss in the AFC Championship Game to the Chiefs this past January. That game is scheduled to take place on Oct. 10 when they travel back to Kansas City for a Sunday night matchup at Arrowhead Stadium.
It will also be Buffalo's first of four scheduled prime-time games in the 2021 season.
The following week will see the Bills back in prime-time, this time on "Monday Night Football" in Tennessee when Buffalo takes on the Titans at Nissan Stadium. It will be the fourth-consecutive season the Bills and Titans will match up, with it being the third-straight year the game will take place in Nashville.
After the bye week in Week 7, Buffalo returns home to prepare for a Halloween affair with the Dolphins in Orchard Park. That divisional matchup will be followed by two-straight road games in Jacksonville and New York.
The Bills' 2021 schedule will feature another playoff rematch from the 2020 season in Week 11, this time against the Colts at Highmark Stadium. Buffalo was able to win their AFC Wild Card Round matchup, 27-24, to win the team's first playoff game since the 1995 season.
For the second time in three seasons, the Bills will be featured on Thanksgiving Day in the NFL. This time, Buffalo will travel to New Orleans and play the Saints in the prime-time slot on Thursday, Nov. 25 at 8:20 p.m. ET.
The following week will see the Bills in prime-time for the fourth and final time this season when they return home to Orchard Park to take on the Patriots at Highmark Stadium. It will be the first time the Bills will host a "Monday Night Football" game since 2018 when New England was in town when Derek Anderson was under center for an injured Josh Allen.
With the Bills playing the NFC South this season, it means they will get the chance to play Tom Brady and the defending Super Bowl champion Buccaneers in Tampa Bay. That matchup is scheduled to take place on Sunday, Dec. 12 at 4:25 p.m. ET at Raymond James Stadium.
The following week will see the Bills in another flex weekend in the NFL, as they are scheduled to face the Panthers in Orchard Park. The game will either take place on Saturday, Dec. 18 or Sunday, Dec. 19, and will be determined later in the season whether the league wants to feature Buffalo separately in its own time slot on that Saturday.
After the Bills wrap up their road portion of the 2021 schedule in Week 16 against the Patriots in Foxboro, the team will play its final two games of the season at home against the Falcons in Week 17 and Jets in Week 18. Both of those games will be held just after the start of the new 2022 calendar year.