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The 2013 NFL schedule will be released at 5:00 p.m. PT tonight, at which point we will know the 49ers regular season road to the playoffs. The team will likely have five prime time games, and several Fox and CBS games of the week. The latter part is important because it gets the team on mostly national television those weeks they are not in primetime.
We have our first real rumor on the 49ers schedule from a Green Bay Packers beat writer:
Am hearing the #Packers will play at #49ers at 3:25 pm in the season opener on Sept. 8.
— tom silverstein (@TomSilverstein) April 18, 2013
This would mark the second straight season the 49ers and Packers open their season together. Last season the 49ers traveled to Lambeau Field for the opener. They then wrapped up the Packers season at Candlestick Park in the divisional round of the playoffs. I can't imagine Colin Kaepernick has left their nightmares quite yet.
This also likely would be the FOX Game of the Week for Week 1. That does not get 100% television coverage, but it would make the game available to a whole lot more people.
If you see any other rumors in the next 45 minutes, feel free to drop them in the comments. I'll have a new post up shortly after 5pm when the schedule is unveiled.