Everything Fantasy Fans Need To Know About The 2026 NFL Schedule

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The full 2026 NFL schedule was released on Thursday night, and it’s chock-full of big-time matchups and games loaded with fantasy superstars. While I’ve already talked about why the schedule release is mostly a nothing burger in fantasy football leagues, at least in terms of fantasy points allowed data and the “best” and “worst” schedules, there were a few interesting nuggets I picked out of the new slate that you need to know before your fantasy drafts.

Here’s a look.

The bye weeks

The byes begin in Week 5 with the Chiefs and Panthers and end in Week 14 with the Cardinals and Cowboys. At least there isn’t a bye-maggedon (six teams on a bye) in the week before the fantasy postseason like there was in 2024! The NFL did fantasy fans a favor, as just two teams are off in the week before the fantasy playoffs begin in most standard leagues.

There is only one week during this stretch with no byes (Week 12). That is Thanksgiving Week, when the league has a game on Wednesday, three games on Thursday and one game on Black Friday. There are three weeks (5, 9, 14) with two teams off; five weeks (6-8, 10, 13) with four teams off; and just one week (11) with six teams off.

The most notable among these byes is Week 10, when fantasy fans will be without the fantasy stars from Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia and Tampa Bay. If you’re wondering, bye-mageddon week (11) includes the Browns, Falcons, Packers, Patriots, Rams and Seahawks.

Travel

Playing in the National Football League can be very taxing on the body, but so can travel.

The teams that will travel the most miles next season: 49ers (38,105 miles), Rams (34,847), Texans (28,470), Cowboys (27,980) and Patriots (27,590). This will be the second consecutive year that the Rams will travel more than 34,000 miles (imagine the frequent-flier miles!). The teams that will travel the least this season: Panthers (8.740 miles), Browns (9,073 miles), Bears (10,767 miles), Buccaneers (12,185 miles) and Packers (12,673 miles).

International games

The NFL will play a record nine international games this season, starting in Week 1 when the 49ers face the Rams in Melbourne, Australia. Fantasy fans should be aware that the game will be played on a Friday in Australia (10:35 am kickoff) but on a Thursday night in the United States (8:35 p.m. ET kickoff). The Cowboys will face the Ravens in Brazil in Week 3, the Commanders will battle the Colts in London in Week 4 and the Eagles will face the Jaguars in London in Week 5. In Week 6, the Jags will play the Texans again in London.

The Steelers will face off against the Saints in France in Week 7; the Bengals and Falcons will battle in Spain in Week 9; the Patriots and Lions will duke it out in Germany in Week 10; and finally, the 49ers will face off against the Vikings in Mexico City in Week 11. Of these nine games, six will have kickoffs at 9:30 am ET/6:30 a.m. PT, so be sure to set those lineups early!

Prime-time games

The first prime-time game will be played in Week 1, when the Patriots and Seahawks have a rare Wednesday night rematch of the Super Bowl. The Bills and Rams have the most prime-time games (7), while the Chiefs, Cowboys, Packers and Seahawks have six games apiece. The Giants, Lions, Ravens, Steelers, Texans and Vikings have four prime-time tilts, and the Bengals, Broncos, Buccaneers, Chargers, Commanders, Falcons, Jaguars and Panthers have three.

The Colts have two prime-time games, the Browns and Saints have one apiece, and the Cardinals, Dolphins, Jets, Raiders and Titans will all be left out in primetime.

Dome sweet dome

Playing indoors, especially in the winter months, is always an advantage for NFL offenses. Here are the teams with the most games being played in domes or retractable-roof stadiums in 2026.

13 games: Cardinals
12 games: Cowboys
11 games: Falcons, Raiders, Rams, Vikings
10 games: Chargers, Chargers, Texans

Fantasy football postseason: easiest

The Bengals have one of the easiest schedules for the full season, and the fantasy playoffs are no different with matchups against the Panthers, Colts and Ravens. The Lions also face a nice slate overall, and matchups against the Vikings, Giants and Bears could be beneficial (two of those games are in domes, too). New Orleans should benefit from a light slate too, and they’ll face the Buccaneers, Cardinals and Falcons in the fantasy playoffs (two games indoors). The Vikings face two home games in the playoffs, and all three contests (Lions, Commanders, Jets) are favorable. The Week 17 matchup in New York could have some weather, though.

Fantasy football postseason: toughest

The Dolphins don’t have many fantasy assets, and their playoff slate is tough with matchups at the Packers and at home against the Chargers and Bills. The Super Bowl champion Seahawks could struggle in the fantasy playoffs, too, as they’ll face the Eagles on the road, plus a tough home game against the Rams. It does get easier in fantasy championship week against the Panthers, however. While I wouldn’t tell you to avoid Chiefs altogether, managers should keep in mind that they face the Patriots, 49ers, and Chargers during the fantasy playoffs.

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Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollowPublished 23 seconds ago | Modified 23 seconds agoMICHAEL FABIANO

Michael Fabiano is a fantasy football analyst for Sports Illustrated. His weekly rankings and Start 'Em, Sit 'Em articles are must-reads for fantasy players. He is also the co-host of the Fantasy Dirt Podcast on SI. Before joining SI in August 2020, he worked for CBS Sports, NFL Network and SiriusXM. He also contributes to Westwood One Radio. Fabiano was the first fantasy analyst to appear on one of the four major TV networks and is a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame.

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