The 2026 NFL regular season begins on Wednesday, September 9, with a rematch of Super Bowl LX between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. This marks an unconventional start to the season, deviating from the traditional Thursday night opener.
The Seahawks, who won Super Bowl LX to conclude the 2025 season, will host the Patriots at 8:20 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on NBC and Peacock, with NFL+ providing mobile streaming.
Following the Wednesday opener, the NFL's Week 1 schedule continues with a unique Thursday night matchup on September 10. The San Francisco 49ers will face the Los Angeles Rams at 8:35 p.m. ET in Melbourne, Australia. This game will stream exclusively on Netflix and represents the league's first regular-season contest held in Australia.
Week 1 will feature 16 games spread across four days. Sunday, September 13, will host a full slate of games, including the Bears at Panthers, Buccaneers at Bengals, Saints at Lions, Bills at Texans, Ravens at Colts, Browns at Jaguars, Falcons at Steelers, and Jets at Titans, all kicking off at 1 p.m. ET. Later on Sunday, the Cardinals at Chargers, Dolphins at Raiders, Packers at Vikings, and Commanders at Eagles will begin at 4:25 p.m. ET. The week's first Sunday Night Football game will be the Dallas Cowboys at the New York Giants at 8:20 p.m. ET, airing on NBC, Peacock, and NFL+.
The opening week concludes on Monday, September 14, with the Denver Broncos facing the Kansas City Chiefs at 8:15 p.m. ET. This game will be broadcast on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, and NFL+.
Notable matchups beyond the season opener include the Bills-Texans, Packers-Vikings, and Commanders-Eagles on Sunday afternoon, followed by the Cowboys-Giants primetime game, and the Broncos-Chiefs Monday night showdown.