The full 2022 NFL schedule will be released tonight, but the way things are trickling out we might know at least half of that by the 8 p.m. ET official release. One of the marquee interconference matchups on the slate is Kansas City Chiefs at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and that will be played Sunday night in Week 4 (NBC). It could be the last matchup between future Hall of Fame QBs Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady with the Bucs opening as 2.5-point favorites.
Brady retired for about a month this offseason so it's not clear whether he will do so after the 2022 campaign, but he has a financial reason to do so now: He has agreed to a reported 10-year, $375 million contract with Fox Sports to take over as that network's top NFL analyst whenever he does step aside. That's by far a record-breaking contract for an announcer (almost Judge Judy money), and Brady has only just surpassed $300 million in NFL contract pay for his career.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion tweeted that he is excited to eventually join Fox but noted that he still has "unfinished business" as a player. Many believe that if the Bucs were to win their second Super Bowl in three seasons – and they are +800 second favorites at Caesars Sportsbook – that Brady will finally call it quits. He will be 45 in August and isn't signed beyond this season.
If the Bucs and Chiefs don't make Super Bowl 57, Week 4 most likely will mark the final matchup between Brady and Mahomes. The two have faced off five times, including the playoffs, and Brady leads the series 3-2 dating to his Patriots days. Brady's Bucs upset Mahomes' Chiefs 31-9 in Tampa in Super Bowl 55 in their most recent tilt.
We know one other set game for each team: The Chiefs will host the Chargers on Thursday night in Week 2 on Amazon, and the Bucs will take on the Seahawks in Week 10 in the NFL's first regular-season game in Germany.
While the full schedule will be out at 8 p.m. ET, two hours prior teams will release the dates, times and opponents for their season openers.
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