The NFL season begins on Wednesday night at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC as the Dallas Cowboys travel to take on Eli Manning and the defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants.
The other feature game of the week will be on Sunday night, also on NBC at 8:20 p.m. ET, when Peyton Manning returns to the NFL with the Denver Broncos after sitting out the 2011 season with a neck injury. The Broncos will be hosting AFC North foe the Pittsburgh Steelers.
As for the games across the NFC South, here is their Week 1 schedule:
Atlanta Falcons at Kansas City Chiefs, 1 p.m., TV: CBS
The Falcons head out to Arrowhead Stadium and face the Chiefs in an early season test against a possibly much improved Kansas City team. With the NFC South being a solid division, a win over the inferior Chiefs would be a good way to start the season.
Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1 p.m., TV: CBS
This is the only game that features two NFC South teams, and Panthers are hoping that quarterback Cam Newton will have a sophomore slump. As for the Bucs, they are kicking off the Greg Schiano era in hopes to turn around the teams losing ways and get them back as a winner.
Washington Redskins at New Orleans Saints, 1 p.m., TV: FOX
The Saints have Drew Brees, Mark Ingram and Darren Sproles to lead the way, but this will be a long road for them with replacement coaches due to suspension from the bounty scandal. The Redskins get to show off their new shiny toy in their rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III.
For more on the Falcons visit The Falcoholic and SB Nation Atlanta. SB Nation's NFL hub has you covered for news on all 32 teams.