The opponents for all 2013 regular-season games have been determined and a complete list of each team's home and away matchups was issued Monday by the NFL.
The scheduling formula implemented in 2002 with realignment guarantees that all teams play each other on a regular, rotating basis.
Under the formula, every team plays 16 games as follows:
*Home and away against its three division opponents (6 games).
*The four teams from another division within its conference on a rotating three-year cycle (4 games).
*The four teams from a division in the other conference on a rotating four-year cycle (4 games).
*Two intraconference games based on the prior year's standings (2 games). These games match a first-place team against the first-place teams in the two same-conference divisions the team is not scheduled to play that season. The second-place, third-place, and fourth-place teams in a conference are matched in the same way each year.
Beginning in 2010, a change was made to how teams are paired in the schedule rotation to ensure that teams playing the AFC and NFC West divisions would not be required to make two west coast trips (e.g. at San Francisco and at Seattle), while other teams in their division had none (e.g. at St. Louis and at Arizona).
The official 2013 schedule, with playing dates and times, will be announced in the spring.
NFL Kickoff 2013 Weekend will begin on Thursday night, September 5, and the regular season will conclude on December 29.
Super Bowl XLVIII at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey will be played on Sunday, February 2.
New Orleans Saints' 2013 opponents:
HOME: NFC South, Cardinals, 49ers, Cowboys, Bills, Dolphins
AWAY:NFC South, Rams, Seahawks, Bears, Patriots, Jets
Check out the full lists of 2013 NFL opponents here.
