After winning 13 games in 2022, the 2023 Minnesota Vikings schedule unsurprisingly featured five matchups under the lights in primetime. For the 2024 Vikings schedule, well, let's just say they're not going to be in the national spotlight as much.
Minnesota released their official schedule for the 2024 NFL season on Wednesday, and of the 17 games on their slate, only two will be played after the sun goes down.
Believe it or not, this is actually the third time in the last five seasons that the Vikings have had two or fewer primetime contests on their schedule. Minnesota also only had two primetime games during the 2022 and 2020 campaigns.
Minnesota Vikings Schedule: When are the primetime games in 2024?
For the 2024 season, neither of the Vikings' two primetime matchups will take place on a Sunday night.
However, Minnesota could actually end up with more primetime games during the 2024 campaign, as two of their contests are eligible to be flexed (Week 16 against the Seattle Seahawks and Week 18 against the Detroit Lions).
For now, though, the Vikings will play the following two matchups in primetime during the 2024 season.
Week 8 - at Los Angeles Rams
Date: Thursday, October 24th
Time: 7:15 p.m. CST
Minnesota was always guaranteed to get at least one primetime game in 2024, as every team in the NFL plays on Thursday at least once during each regular season, and this year, their Thursday night contest has them heading out west for a showdown against the Rams.
It will be the first time that Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell has faced Los Angeles since he left his role as the Rams' offensive coordinator in 2022. O'Connell going up against his old boss in Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay will certainly be a big storyline heading into this contest.
Week 15 - Chicago Bears
Date: Monday, December 16th
Time: 7 p.m. CST
Minnesota and Chicago are no stranger to having one of their matchups take place in primetime, as this season's contest will be the fourth played under the lights in the last five seasons.
This year's primetime matchup between the Vikings and Bears could potentially feature a showdown between two of the NFL's top rookie quarterbacks, as Caleb Williams is expected to start under center immediately for Chicago in 2024, and J.J. McCarthy might be in the starting lineup for Minnesota by the time this contest pops up on the schedule.