The NFL offseason is in full effect with free agency and the draft over. There’s not a whole lot to talk about right now, but in two days’ time, we will finally know the entirety of the 2026 NFL Schedule.

On Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET, the NFL will release the full 2026 schedule, so while we already know who everyone will be playing, we’ll find out dates and times for every game. On paper it may not seem that exciting to the casual fan, but going to Green Bay in September or late December could completely change the outcome of that game, so it’s very important.

The schedule release is something a lot of fans haven’t paid much attention to in the past, but it can make or break your season. I’ve seen a lot of people online asking questions about how the schedule release works the past few days, so I’ve set out to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about the NFL schedule release.

Why Do We Already Know Everyone’s Opponents?

The NFL builds up the schedule release as this big deal, and while millions still tune in every year, the fact that we know each team’s opponents before the schedule release takes a bit of the flare out of it.

The reason we know everyone’s opponents beforehand is because the NFL uses a formula to create their schedules. The formula is supposed to make sure that everyone plays all 31 other teams at least once every four years, and it’s structured to give the best teams a harder schedule, and the worst teams an easier schedule (though it doesn’t always work out like that).

Here’s how the NFL schedule is made.

First, teams have three divisional opponents that they play twice a year – once at home and once on the road. That takes up six of the 17 games on a team’s schedule.

Teams also play an entire division within their own conference. Say you’re the Green Bay Packers in the NFC North. They will play the entire NFC South this year (two at home, two on the road), the entire NFC West next year and the entire NFC East the year after that. Then the cycle will start all over again with the NFC South in 2029. That takes up another four games, putting you at 10 out of 17.

Teams also play another entire division, but in the other conference. This year, the Packers will play the AFC East, then the AFC West in 2027, the AFC South in 2028 and the AFC North in 2029. Just like with the NFC, this will cycle once every four years and take up another four games of the schedule, putting them at 14 out of 17.

This is where things get a bit hard to explain. Last year, the Packers finished in second place in the NFC North. They’re already playing all four NFC South teams this year, so for two of their games, they will play the second place finisher in the NFC East (Dallas Cowboys) and NFC West (Los Angeles Rams). Depending on when they finish and which NFC division they play, their opponents will vary each year.

Finally, for the 17th game, a team will play a team in the other conference who finished in the same place in their division. Since the Packers are already playing the AFC East, they are out of the equation, leaving the NFL to choose between the second place finishers of the AFC North (Baltimore Ravens), AFC South (Houston Texans) and AFC West (Los Angeles Chargers).

And that’s how the 17 opponents are determined before the schedule even releases.

Which Divisions Are Playing Who?

So now that we know which divisions you play make up a large portion of your schedule (eight out of 17 games), who is every division playing this season? I compiled a list so you don’t have to do the digging yourself.

NFC North: NFC South & AFC East

NFC South: NFC North & AFC North

NFC East: NFC West & AFC South

NFC West: NFC East & AFC West

AFC North: NFC South & AFC South

AFC South: NFC East & AFC North

AFC East: NFC North & AFC West

AFC West: NFC West & AFC East

Why Was There So Much Uncertainty This Year?

For a while, it was looking like the schedule release could be delayed. The NFL hadn’t set an official date until the end of last week, but it almost always falls on the second week of May, and they almost missed that deadline. They got it sorted in time to get it out on May 14th, but why was there even some concern in the first place?

Well, the NFL is always growing, and part of that growth is international games. There will be nine of them in 2026, surpassing the seven-game record set in 2025. But that’s not the only reason it’s been tough. The league is playing in seven different countries across the world. That’s a lot to figure out in such a short time, because if you’re going to make a team travel internationally, they typically want a bye week after, so it can really jumble things up.

There were also broadcast negotiations going on. Which networks are going to get which games? Now that streaming services like Netflix and YouTube are getting five games each, how do they divvy those games up? These are all things that have to be negotiated, and it takes a good amount of time.

The NFL is also planning to add a Thanksgiving Eve game and to possibly do a doubleheader on Black Friday. That shouldn’t cause too much of a hold up, but it shows just how many factors are being added this year.

Luckily, the league was still able to crank it out in time, so we will learn the full schedule on Thursday afternoon.

What Does the International Slate Look Like?

As I mentioned earlier, the NFL is set to play a game in seven different countries outside of the United States this season. So where are they expanding out to?

The NFL’s international outreach started in London, and the game has been growing incredibly quick across the pond. There will be three games held in London this year, with the Jacksonville Jaguars taking part in two of them and the Washington Commanders taking part in the other. We won’t know their opponents until Wednesday night, but we know those two teams will be involved in those three games.

The NFL will also play a game in Spain for the second year running. Last year, the Miami Dolphins and Washington Commanders faced off in Madrid, but this year, we will see the Atlanta Falcons play an unknown opponents in Madrid.

The league is also expanding its reach to France for the first time ever. The New Orleans Saints, who obviously have French ties, will face a yet-to-be-announced opponent in France, with rumors suggesting it could be sometime in October.

For their final European game, the Detroit Lions are set to face an unknown opponent in Munich, Germany. This will be the sixth time in five years the NFL has played a game in Germany.

Leaving Europe, we move to Australia, where the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers are set to face off on Thursday night in Week 1. This is the first time the league has played a game in Australia, and I love that it’s just one night after the season opener.

The NFL will continue pushing into Mexico with the 49ers playing their second international game in Mexico City against an unknown opponent.

And then finally, for the third year in a row, the NFL will play a game in Brazil, with the Dallas Cowboys and Baltimore Ravens squaring off in Rio in Week 3.

That’s seven different countries in four different continents. The NFL is growing, and it’s not going to stop at nine international games.

Who Has the Easiest and Toughest Schedule?

Last year, the New England Patriots were subject of the “easy schedule” debate, and it was true, their schedule was historically easy. However, they dispelled that narrative in the playoffs by making their way to the Super Bowl. So, who has the easiest schedule heading into the 2026 season?

On paper, it’s the Cleveland Browns. If you take every team’s 2025 record and average it out, the Browns’ opponents had an average winning percentage of .429. Meaning, in 2025, their opponents won less than half of their games. Obviously, that can change because teams get better and worse each offseason, but the Browns’ toughest opponents are likely going to be Houston and Baltimore.

There are quite a few teams pretty close to Cleveland’s strength of schedule. The New Orleans Saints (.434), Cincinnati Bengals (.450), Indianapolis Colts (.465) and Atlanta Falcons (.465) are all right there with them for the easiest schedules in the league.

So how about the hardest? Everyone loves to talk about who has the easiest path, but who has to go through a gauntlet to make it to the postseason?

That would be the Chicago Bears, with an opponent average winning percentage of .550. Chicago plays in a tough NFC North, but they also have to face New England, Philadelphia, Buffalo and Seattle. That’s not an easy path.

The Miami Dolphins and Arizona Cardinals, two teams that are projected to finish towards the bottom of the league, don’t have it much easier with a .542 and .538 strength of schedule, respectively. Then, it’s the Green Bay Packers (.538) and the Kansas City Chiefs (.536) rounding out the top-five.

There’s no such thing as an easy schedule in the NFL, but some teams are in a much better spot than others.

How Many Primetime Games Can a Team Have?

One of the best parts of the schedule release is finding out when your team is going to play on primetime. Everyone wants a Sunday or Monday night slot (or Thursday night, I guess) so their team can show the entire world what they’ve got.

The NFL can be a bit biased when selecting their primetime schedule. Unless you’re a big market team like the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, New York Jets or someone like that, you typically have to be considered a playoff contender to get more than one primetime game. But how many primetime games can a single team have in a season?

Right now, the max primetime games a team can play in a single season is six…Technically. When the schedule releases, you can only have six primetime games, but if you’re someone like the Cowboys or Chiefs, who will likely be at that maximum number, and the league decides to flex one of your games into primetime, you technically could have more than six.

Last year, the Cowboys and Chiefs both played six primetime games, which were the most in the league. I’d expect those two to lead the charge once again, but it will be very interesting to see which other teams come close to that number.

Which Revenge Games Should You Watch For?

Every offseason, players are either traded to or sign with new teams, and for a handful of them, they’ll get the opportunity to play in a “revenge game,” which is when a player gets to play against his former team for the first time. There are going to be plenty of them this year, but here are a few you should watch for when the schedule releases.

Chiefs vs Seahawks: Super Bowl LX MVP Kenneth Walker did not receive the money he wanted from Seattle, so he jumped ship in free agency and signed with the Chiefs. These two will matchup at some point this season, and it will be in Seattle, where Walker has played so many games in his career. Will the former Super Bowl MVP go off against his former team? Or will Mike Macdonald’s defense be formidable enough to slow him down?

Ravens at Bengals: Trey Hendrickson will have two chances to face his former team, the Cincinnati Bengals, who refused to give him a long-term deal for years. Now, as a member of the Baltimore Ravens, he will get the chance to sack his former quarterback Joe Burrow. Can he wreak havoc on the Bengals? We’ll find out in a few months.

Panthers at Eagles: The Philadelphia Eagles wanted to re-sign Jaelan Phillips this offseason, but they wouldn’t cough up the same type of cash as the Carolina Panthers. Phillips moved to Carolina, who will travel to Philadelphia this season. Can Phillips show the Eagles why they should’ve paid him the big bucks?

Dolphins at Packers: This one is a revenge game for multiple people. Jeff Hafley was Green Bay’s defensive coordinator last year, but he accepted a job as Miami’s head coach, and now he’ll get to play his former team. This is also a revenge game for Malik Willis, who was the backup for Green Bay last year, but played really well in the limited snaps he got. How funny would it be if the Dolphins upset Green Bay, and they missed the playoffs by a game?