The Vikings 2024 schedule was released Wednesday.

Minnesota is of course scheduled to play six contests against division rivals Chicago, Detroit and Green Bay. The Vikings are slated to open the 2024 season on the road against the New York Giants and will open at home in Week 2 by hosting the 49ers.

They will "host" the Jets in London in Week 5, which will be followed by a Week 6 bye.

Notably, Minnesota will finish the season with three of their final four games against division foes – and all three of those contests home at U.S. Bank Stadium.

This season's slate of games promises plenty of top-level competition. Intriguing matchups between the Vikings and their non-division foes include the following:

Week 1 at Giants: T Christian Darrisaw vs. DE Brian Burns

It's been quite a while since Christian Darrisaw's first NFL start.

The left tackle faced Brian Burns at Carolina during Week 6 of the 2021 season and held his own against the highly respected edge rusher.

Burns and Darrisaw met again last season, when the Vikings defeated the Panthers 21-13. Burns recorded a tackle and fumble recovery but did not log a sack against Minnesota.

Burns signed with the Giants during free agency after spending five seasons in Carolina and receiving two Pro Bowl nods. He will prove a worthy adversary for Darrisaw in the opponents' third meeting, once again on Burns' "home" turf.

Their competition goes all the way back to 2018 when Darrisaw was a freshman at Virginia Tech and made his first college start against Burns and Florida State.

Week 2 vs. 49ers: "Swiss Army Knife" Metellus vs. "Swiss Army Knife" McCaffrey

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For the Vikings home opener, we'll see two do-it-all players face off.

San Francisco's Christian McCaffrey may be labeled as a running back, but the nine-season star does just about everything imaginable in the 49ers offense. Last season, he led the league in scrimmage yards with 2,023.

On the other side of the ball, Vikings safety Josh Metellus was credited with lining up at 12 different positions in Brian Flores' defense last season.

Metellus is entering his fifth season and second as a key piece of the Vikings defense, in addition to his role on special teams. Against the 49ers last October, Metellus helped limit McCaffrey's 49ers to 17 points, which was well below San Francisco's season average of 28.9 points per game.

If Minnesota hopes to secure back-to-back victories over the defending NFC Champions, Metellus will likely need to have a big outing.

Week 3 vs. Texans: T Brian O'Neill vs. DE Danielle Hunter

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Brian O'Neill and Danielle Hunter have gone head-to-head numerous times … but only in practice.

This time around, the teammates for the past six years will line up as opponents when Hunter takes the field for just his third game not in a Vikings jersey.

Hunter signed with the Texans in free agency after his ninth season in Minnesota, a campaign capped by his fourth Pro Bowl appearance.

Though we didn't include him as part of this game's intriguing matchup, the Vikings will see another familiar face in receiver Stefon Diggs, whom Houston acquired from Buffalo via trade in April. Former Vikings Case Keenum and Kris Boyd are also Texans.

Week 5 vs. Jets (in London): S Harrison Smith vs. QB Aaron Rodgers

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Do you think Harrison Smith and Aaron Rodgers imagined they'd ever be preparing for their 13^th overlapped season in the NFL and 21^st game against one another?

Rodgers spent all last season rehabbing a torn Achilles suffered on the first series of his first game for the Jets — after spending 18 seasons with division-rival Green Bay.

Though facing each other is old news for Smith and Rodgers, this will be the first time they do so on international soil. The Week 5 matchup at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will mark Rodgers' second regular-season game in London, and it will be Smith's fourth.

Smith and Rodgers share a mutual respect for each other's games, as the two have combined for 16 Pro Bowl appearances, but this meeting across the pond is likely to provide a memorable moment in their chess match.

Week 8 at Rams: Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell vs. Rams Head Coach Sean McVay

Don't look any farther than the head coach matchup for this one.

Minnesota's road game against the Rams will be Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell's first time coaching against his former team, for whom he worked as the offensive coordinator from 2020-21, and his first time back at SoFi Stadium since he earned a Super Bowl LVI ring.

O'Connell has spoken highly of McVay's role in preparing O'Connell for his first head coaching role, and it will be interesting to observe the pregame interactions between the two in Los Angeles.

Once the game kicks off, though, it will be padawan against teacher.

Week 9 vs. Colts: LB Blake Cashman vs. RB Jonathan Taylor

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There's no two ways about it – Jonathan Taylor is a tough man to slow down.

The Colts running back played just 10 games last season but scored seven rushing touchdowns. He also ranked fifth in the NFL with 74.1 yards per game (ranking fifth in the league) and scored seven touchdowns. Taylor's best campaign thus far has been 2021, during which he racked up 1,811 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns.

Taylor plays a key role in Indianapolis' offense and will be a focus for Flores' defense. That unit now includes Minnesota native Blake Cashman, whom the Vikings signed in free agency.

Cashman starred at Eden Prairie High School and stayed in Minnesota for college as a Golden Gopher. He spent his first three pro seasons with the Jets before joining the Texans for 2022 and 2023.

Cashman had a breakout season last year, starting 13 of 14 games and racking up 106 tackles, five passes defensed and an interception.

Minnesota will look to Cashman to help contain Taylor in Week 9.

Week 10 at Jaguars: C Garrett Bradbury vs. DT Arik Armstead

Bradbury is no stranger to interior defensive lineman Arik Armstead, a 2015 first-round draft pick who spent the past nine seasons in San Francisco.

The 49ers parted ways with Armstead this spring, and he signed with the Jaguars just two days later.

At 30 years old, Armstead isn't a spring chicken by NFL standards. But he also hasn't shown many signs of slowing down. For the Niners last season, he totaled 27 tackles and 5.0 sacks, the third most he's recorded in a season.

Bradbury will have a good challenge going up against the imposing Armstead and will look to keep him from taking down Minnesota's QB.

Week 11 at Titans: Vikings CBs vs Titans WRs

There's a talented group of receivers in Tennessee.

The Titans already had veteran DeAndre Hopkins on the roster, having signed him as a free agent last May, and this year they also added Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd. And while he's not a wideout, new Titans tight end Nick Vannett also adds a pass-catching threat for the Nashville squad.

Minnesota's cornerbacks will certainly need to be on their Ps and Qs against a Tennessee offense with multiple playmakers.

It remains to be seen exactly what the Vikings starting lineup will look like, but they did add veteran Shaq Griffin during free agency and are returning Byron Murphy, Jr. Akayleb Evans and Mekhi Blackmon are players who have logged significant minutes, and Minnesota also drafted Khyree Jackson last month in the fourth round.

Week 13 vs. Cardinals: RB Aaron Jones vs. S Budda Baker

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It's fair to say there's plenty of intrigue around Aaron Jones facing his former team, Green Bay, for the first time this season.

But since we're focusing on non-division opponents, let's take a look at the matchup between Jones and Cardinals veteran safety Budda Baker.

Jones has shown he's got plenty left in the tank, and he's also shown another level of energy with a fresh start in Minnesota. He'll be facing a tough opponent in Baker, who tends to be a thorn in opposing offense's sides.

Baker started 12 games for Arizona last season and totaled 87 tackles and five tackles for loss, but it was his first season without an interception since 2019.

Week 14 vs. Falcons: Vikings Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores vs. QB Kirk Cousins

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Welcome back to U.S. Bank Stadium, Kirk.

Cousins will return to Minnesota for the first time since parting ways with the Vikings after six seasons.

Vikings fans are quite familiar with Cousins. Flores' entire defense will need to be prepared for Cousins, whether containing him in the pocket, taking away his options downfield or trying to make a play on the ball.

The matchup likely will be especially fun for a defender like Smith, who spent the entirety of Cousins' Vikings career with him and formed a friendship off the field, as well.

Cousins is coming off a torn Achilles that sidelined him for Minnesota's last nine-plus games of the 2023 campaign, but he already has been a participant in Falcons on-field workouts.

Week 16 at Seahawks: OLB Jonathan Greenard vs. T Charles Cross

The Vikings signed edge rusher Jonathan Greenard this spring after parting ways with Hunter in free agency.

At Seattle in Week 15, Greenard will likely have some snaps against Charles Cross, the ninth overall pick by the Seahawks in 2022 who received a Pro Football Focus grade of 69.7 in pass blocking.

It isn't unusual to see offensive linemen take a big step forward in Season 3, so it will be interesting to see how Cross bolsters a Seattle offensive line – and how Greenard does in getting around him to affect QB Geno Smith.