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The NFL released the full 2026 schedule Thursday night, and it opens with a rematch of Super Bowl LX as the defending champion Seattle Seahawks will host the New England Patriots on Sept. 9.
Since 2004, defending champs have gone 16-5 in season openers, according to ESPN Research, including the Philadelphia Eagles’ 24-20 win against the Dallas Cowboys to start the 2025 season.
The season is starting on a Wednesday to accommodate the first regular-season game in Melbourne, Australia. The Los Angeles Rams will play the San Francisco 49ers on Sept. 10 at 8:35 p.m. ET. Melbourne is 14 hours ahead of New York and 17 hours ahead of Los Angeles and San Francisco, meaning the game will kick off at 10:35 a.m. local time the next day in Australia.
The NFL will play a record nine international games in 2026 across four continents and seven countries.
The only other time the NFL season started on a Wednesday was in 2012 to accommodate then-President Barack Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention the following day.
The first "Sunday Night Football" matchup will feature John Harbaugh making his New York Giants debut against the Cowboys. In another NFC East rivalry game, Dallas will host the Eagles on Thanksgiving.
The Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs will face off Sept. 14 in the first “Monday Night Football” game.
NFL Nation reporters will provide a bold prediction for every team, along with analysis for each team and links to see the full schedule. Check out which teams have the hardest and easiest schedules.
Jump to a division:
NFC East | NFC North | NFC South | NFC West
AFC East | AFC North | AFC South | AFC West
NFC EAST
Dallas Cowboys
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Are Cowboys or Giants in a better position to make a statement in Week 1?
Damien Woody and Dan Graziano discuss the Giants' matchup vs. the Cowboys on the first Sunday night game of the season.
New York Giants
Giants will enter their Week 8 bye week with a winning record. And in order to do that, it will have to involve beating either the Cowboys or Rams in one of the first two games. There are some opportunities for wins early in the season for the Giants.
Of their first seven opponents, only the Rams and Texans had winning records last season. Four of the first six games are also at home. Read more from Jordan Raanan
Philadelphia Eagles
The regular-season finale versus the Giants will seal at least one team's playoff fate. The Giants have been largely irrelevant in the NFC East race in recent years but the coach/quarterback combo of John Harbaugh and Jaxson Dart appears formidable and could lead a football renaissance in New York. Perhaps the division title will be on the line when these teams tangle Week 18. Read more from Tim McManus
Washington Commanders
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NFC NORTH
Chicago Bears
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Detroit Lions
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Green Bay Packers
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Minnesota Vikings
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NFC SOUTH
Atlanta Falcons
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Carolina Panthers
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New Orleans Saints
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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NFC WEST
Arizona Cardinals
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Los Angeles Rams
The Rams will win at least five games in the NFC West. Los Angeles went 4-2 in the division during the 2025 regular season, losing to the 49ers at home and the Seahawks on the road. And while this will continue to be one of the best divisions in the NFL, the Rams took big strides to improve their defense this offseason. Read more from Sarah Barshop
San Francisco 49ers
Despite the long Australia trip, the 49ers will open the season 3-0. Beating the Rams anywhere is a tall task and the disparate travel plans between the teams — the Niners will spend about a week in Melbourne while the Rams will be in and out – will provide an interesting test case for jet lag recovery and time zone acclimation.
But San Francisco almost always finds a way to be competitive with the Rams and if it can get a win there, the Niners will have manageable home games against the rebuilding Dolphins and Cardinals to soften the blow when they return to the United States.. Read more from Nick Wagoner
Seattle Seahawks
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AFC EAST
Buffalo Bills
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Miami Dolphins
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New England Patriots
Unlike Super Bowl LX, when the Patriots were handled with relative ease, the opener against the Seahawks will come down to the end of the fourth quarter with New England pulling off the upset … and the game-winning touchdown scored by a wide receiver not currently on the Patriots roster. Read more from Mike Reiss
New York Jets
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AFC NORTH
Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens go on an early tear to begin 6-0, which would mark the best start in franchise history. This is easily the softest part of the Ravens' schedule. Baltimore's first six opponents (the Colts, Saints, Cowboys, Titans, Falcons and Browns) all had losing records last season and had a combined 37-64-1 record (.369) in 2025.
This would represent a complete turnaround from last season, when the Ravens struggled early and began 1-5, which tied the worst start in team history. Read more from Jamison Hensley
Schrager: Bengals’ game in Spain shows NFL’s belief in Cincinnati
Peter Schrager reacts to the Bengals getting a matchup vs. the Falcons in Spain.
Cincinnati Bengals
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Cleveland Browns
The Browns will go undefeated in their four-game homestand to get back into the AFC playoff hunt. Between Cleveland's unsettled quarterback situation and as many as five new starting offensive linemen, it could be a bumpy start for an offense that will have to go on the road several times in the season's first half. The offense, though, should get its footing a bit after their Week 11 bye and will rack up some wins at home with an elite defense. Read more from Daniel Oyefusi
Pittsburgh Steelers
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AFC SOUTH
Houston Texans
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Indianapolis Colts
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Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars sweep November. They play five games that month, beginning with the Colts at home. Then comes consecutive road games against the Ravens, Titans, and Giants, followed by a rematch with the Titans in Jacksonville to end the month.
The Jaguars and QB Trevor Lawrence really got rolling in November in 2025 — winning the final eight games of the season to win the AFC South — and they do it again in 2026. Read more from Mike DiRocco
Tennessee Titans
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AFC WEST
Denver Broncos
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Kansas City Chiefs
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Las Vegas Raiders
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Los Angeles Chargers
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