The Raiders open the 2012 season against the Chargers on Monday Night Football. Photo by Tony Gonzales.
The Oakland Raiders open the 2012 NFL regular season in prime-time for the sixth time in eight seasons when the Silver and Black host AFC West rival San Diego on September 10 in the second half of the ESPN Monday night doubleheader. The Raiders then travel to Miami on September 16 in the first of five road games in the Eastern Time Zone this season, marking the most in franchise history.
The Silver and Black will open the season on a Monday Night for the second straight campaign and the fourth time in the past five years prior to traveling to Miami in Week 2. (September 16 kickoff time for the Raiders at Dolphins game has been moved from 1:15 p.m. PT to 10:00 a.m. PT to accommodate fans celebrating the Rosh Hashana holiday.)
The Raiders return home to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 23 and travel to Denver on September 30. The Silver and Black will have a bye on October 7, marking the earliest in a season that the Raiders have had a bye since 2008, which also came in Week 5.
The Raiders return to action on the road on October 14, traveling to Atlanta to face the Falcons at the Georgia Dome for the first time since the 2004 season. Jacksonville will visit O.co Coliseum on October 21 and the Silver and Black will travel to take on AFC West foe Kansas City on October 28.
Oakland will host Tampa Bay for the first time in eight years on November 4 and will head to the East Coast once again for a contest at Baltimore on November 11. After hosting New Orleans on November 18, the Raiders will travel to Cincinnati to face the Bengals on November 25.
The Silver and Black returns home for three straight weeks, which begins with a contest against Cleveland on December 2. The Raiders will then host a nationally televised Thursday Night contest against Denver on December 6. The Raiders-Broncos meeting will be the first NFL Network-televised Thursday Night game hosted by the Silver and Black.
The Raiders will wrap up the three-week home stand against Kansas City on December 16. It will be the first time since 2005 that the Raiders will play three straight games at home during the regular season.
The Silver and Black closes out the 2012 regular season with a pair of road games, making the cross-country trek to Carolina on December 23 and traveling to San Diego for the season finale on December 30.
Despite a record five trips to the Eastern Time Zone this season, none of the Raiders long-distance trips will come in back-to-back weeks.
| Raiders 2012 Preseason Schedule | |||
| Date | Time | Opponent | TV |
| Monday, August 13 | 5:00 pm | Dallas | ESPN |
| Friday, August 17 | 7:00 pm | at Arizona | TBA |
| Saturday, August 25 | 4:00 pm | Detroit | TBA |
| Thursday, August 30 | 7:00 pm | at Seattle | TBA |
| Raiders 2012 Regular Season Schedule | |||
| Date | Time | Opponent | TV |
| Monday, September 10 | 7:15 pm | San Diego | ESPN |
| Sunday, September 16 | 10:00 am | at Miami | CBS |
| Sunday, September 23 | 1:15 pm | Pittsburgh | CBS |
| Sunday, September 30 | 1:05 pm | at Denver | CBS |
| BYE WEEK | |||
| Sunday, October 14 | 10:00 am | at Atlanta | CBS |
| Sunday, October 21 | 1:15 pm | Jacksonville | CBS |
| Sunday, October 28 | 1:05 pm | at Kansas City | CBS |
| Sunday, November 4 | 1:05 pm | Tampa Bay | FOX |
| Sunday, November 11 | 10:00 am | at Baltimore | CBS |
| Sunday, November 18 | 1:05 pm | New Orleans | FOX |
| Sunday, November 25 | 10:00 am | at Cincinnati | CBS |
| Sunday, December 2 | 1:15 pm | Cleveland | CBS |
| Thursday, December 6 | 5:20 pm | Denver | NFLN |
| Sunday, December 16 | 1:15 pm | Kansas City | CBS |
| Sunday, December 23 | 10:00 am | at Carolina | CBS |
| Sunday, December 30 | 1:15 pm | at San Diego | CBS |
| *All Times Are Pacific | |||
