ASHBURN, Va. (WAVY) – After coming off of an 8-8-1 season in which they once again missed the playoffs, the Washington Commanders’ 2023 schedule is far from the kindest one the NFL could have given them.

Though there is a Washington-Dallas Thanksgiving Day matchup, they are featured just once in a prime-time game, have two Thursday games and have multiple two-game road trips.

Besides playing on Thanksgiving, the Commanders also are on the road Christmas Eve, and they have matchups against teams with some of the top quarterbacks in the game, including Josh Allen and Buffalo, Jalen Hurts and Philadelphia, Justin Fields and Chicago, Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets, Dak Prescott in Dallas and Matt Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams.

The Commanders look likely hedge their bets with former University of North Carolina starter Sam Howell under center.

Washington could also face two of their former quarterbacks, as Colt McCoy could be the starter for Arizona in Week 1, as Kyler Murray is still recovering from an ACL injury, and fan-favorite Taylor Heinicke, though a likely backup in Atlanta, could be the starter by the times the two teams face each other in Week 6.

The Commanders will also play just one game in a more-than-three week span after Thanksgiving before closing out the season against Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets, the San Francisco 49ers and the Cowboys again to close out the regular season.

Washington opens the season at home Sept. 10 against the Arizona Cardinals and does not play an NFC East game until they travel to Philadelphia Oct. 1.

The Commanders do not have back-to-back home games until the final two weeks of the season when they face the 49ers and Cowboys.

Washington has three stretches where they are on the road for two consecutive weeks, and they have a span between Oct. 15 and Nov. 12 in which they are on the road for four games in five weeks.

On the rotating scheduling formula that started in 2002, the Commanders will play all four teams from the NFC West and the AFC East.

In the last 20 seasons, the Commanders have reached the playoffs just five times and have not won a playoff game since the 2005 season when they won a wild card game against Tampa Bay. They have not finished above .500 since 2016, when they went 8-7-1 and missed the postseason.

The complete 2023 schedule is as follows:

Preseason

  • TBD – at Cleveland Browns, Time TBD
  • Aug. 21 – Baltimore Ravens, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
  • TBD – Cincinnati Bengals, TBD

Regular Season

  • Week 1 – Sept. 10 – Arizona Cardinals, 1 p.m., FOX
  • Week 2 – Sept. 17 – at Denver Broncos, 4:25 p.m., CBS
  • Week 3 – Sept. 24 – Buffalo Bills, 1 p.m. CBS
  • Week 4 – Oct. 1 – at Philadelphia Eagles, 1 p.m., FOX
  • Week 5 – Oct. 5 – Chicago Bears, 8:15 p.m., Prime Video
  • Week 6 – Oct. 15 – at Atlanta Falcons, 1 p.m., CBS
  • Week 7 – Oct. 22 – at New York Giants, 1 p.m., CBS
  • Week 8 – Oct. 29 – Philadelphia Eagles, 1 p.m., FOX
  • Week 9 – Nov. 5 – at New England Patriots, 1 p.m., FOX
  • Week 10 – Nov. 12 – at Seattle Seahawks, 4:25 p.m., FOX
  • Week 11 – Nov. 19 – New York Giants, 1 p.m., FOX
  • Week 12 – Nov. 23 – at Dallas Cowboys, 4:30 p.m., CBS (Thanksgiving)
  • Week 13 – Dec. 3 – Miami Dolphins, 1 p.m., FOX
  • Week 14 – BYE
  • Week 15 – Dec. 17 – at Los Angeles Rams, 4:05 p.m., CBS
  • Week 16 – Dec. 24 – at New York Jets, 1 p.m., CBS
  • Week 17 – Dec. 31 – San Francisco 49ers, 1 p.m., FOX
  • Week 18 – TBD – Dallas Cowboys, TBD, TBD

Note: BOLD indicates home game.