KC Chiefs will open 2023 regular season schedule against Detroit Lions

The Kansas City Chiefs have learned that the Detroit Lions will be the season-opening opponent for the 2023 season.

The Kansas City Chiefs have learned a bit more of the path they’ll take to defend their Super Bowl LVII championship, and the journey begins by hosting the Detroit Lions at Arrowhead Stadium to start the regular season in 2023.

The Chiefs were already set to host someone to open a new season in the National Football League with a Thursday night primetime appearance on September 7. Various teams had been floated as rumored competitors, but in the end, it’s Dan Campbell’s team from the Motor City that will visit Arrowhead for the first time since 2015. That game was a 45-10 shellacking in which six Chiefs scored offensive touchdowns.

These Lions are a different breed of cat, however, and Campbell’s team is one on the rise in the NFC North. A new era is dawning with the trade of Aaron Rodgers in the division, and the Lions look poised to challenge for supremacy with a tough, physical defense and a run-heavy offense anchored by the old-school coach.

Last season, the Lions earned 6 more wins than the previous season. They also closed the year with 8 wins in their final 10 games, one of the NFL’s hottest teams in the second half. They’ve made plenty of offseason additions, including a slew of new draft picks on both sides of the ball—from safety Brian Branch and running back Jahmyr Gibbs to linebacker Jack Campbell and tight end Sam LaPorta. Free agents signed include Cam Sutton and C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the secondary.