The Detroit Lions' 2011 schedule (with dates and times) will not be released until April, but we already know which teams they will be playing next season. The NFL's schedule is based on a rotation, and next season it has the NFC North playing the entire NFC South and AFC West and one team from the NFC East and NFC West (in addition to the intra-division games). For the Lions, the rotation sets up the following slate of games:
↵Home Games: Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs, San Diego Chargers
↵Away Games: Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, Oakland Raiders
↵Because the Lions finished in third place in the NFC North, they will play the Cowboys from the NFC East and the 49ers from the NFC West. Those two teams also finished in third place in their respective divisions.