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Full ‘Sunday Night Football’ Schedule for the 2026 NFL Season
After waiting all day ‘til Thursday night, the Sunday Night Football schedule for the 2026 season has been released.
The 2026 campaign will mark the 21st season of Sunday Night Football on NBC, which has become the marquee primetime slot for the best game of the week over the past two decades. Heading into this season, NBC has shaken up its pregame show. While Cris Collinsworth, Mike Tirico and Melissa Stark will remain the broadcasters, Chris Simms and Tony Dungy will no longer be part of the pregame program. Instead, the Sunday Night Football pregame show will be hitting the road every week and former Steelers coach Mike Tomlin will join the crew.
With a revamped show in the works, here’s a look at the full slate of games on Sunday Night Football this year.
Sunday Night Football 2026 Schedule
Week | Matchup | Date |
|---|---|---|
1 | Patriots at Seahawks (Wednesday) | September 9 |
1 | Cowboys at Giants | September 13 |
2 | Colts at Chiefs | September 20 |
3 | Rams at Broncos | September 27 |
4 | Lions at Panthers | October 4 |
5 | Ravens at Falcons | October 11 |
6 | Cowboys at Packers | October 18 |
7 | Chiefs at Seahawks | October 25 |
8 | Eagles at Commanders | November 1 |
9 | Buccaneers at Bears | November 8 |
10 | Steelers at Bengals | November 15 |
11 | Vikings at 49ers (Mexico City) | November 22 |
12 | Patriots at Chargers | November 29 |
13 | Texans at Steelers | December 6 |
14 | Bills at Packers | December 13 |
15 | Lions at Vikings | December 20 |
16 | Jaguars at Cowboys | December 27 |
17 | Eagles at 49ers | January 3 |
18 | TBD | January 10 |
Week 1
Patriots @ Seattle Seahawks
Where: Lumen Field, Seattle
When: Wednesday, Sep. 9, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Seahawks will kick off the 2026 season against the Patriots in a Super Bowl rematch as they hang the franchise’s second championship banner. The game will take place on a Wednesday instead of its usual Thursday slot to make room for the Rams and 49ers to face off in Australia the following day.
Week 1
Dallas Cowboys @ New York Giants
Where: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.
When: Sunday, Sep. 13, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Cowboys and Giants will play in the first Sunday night game of the season. Though neither squad made the playoffs last season, the Cowboys hold one of the league’s best offenses and the Giants look to be an ascending squad under first-year coach John Harbaugh.
Week 2
Indianapolis Colts at Kansas City Chiefs
Where: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
When: Sunday, Sep. 20, 8:20 p.m. ET
The NFL is betting on both Daniel Jones and Patrick Mahomes to be healthy by the time Week 2 rolls around. The two quarterbacks are coming off season-ending injuries, including a torn Achilles for Jones and a torn ACL for Mahomes. The two teams last faced off in November, with the Chiefs winning an exciting game in overtime.
Week 3
Los Angeles Rams at Denver Broncos
Where: Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colo.
When: Sunday, Sep. 27, 8:20 p.m. ET
The two conference championship losers will face off on Sunday Night Football as the Rams and Broncos meet up in Week 3. This will be the third consecutive stand-alone game for the Rams, who begin the season in Australia before playing on Monday Night Football in Week 2.
Week 4
Detroit Lions at Carolina Panthers
Where: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
When: Sunday, Oct. 4, 8:20 p.m. ET
After returning to the playoffs last season, the Panthers will play on Sunday Night Football. They’ll take on the Lions, who are looking to rebound after falling short of the postseason in 2025.
Week 5
Baltimore Ravens at Atlanta Falcons
Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Ga.
When: Sunday, Oct. 11, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Week 5 edition of Sunday Night Football features two teams with new head coaches in the Jesse Minter-led Ravens and the Kevin Stefanski-led Falcons. Both coaches will look to make a good impression in their Sunday night debuts with their new teams.
Week 6
Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers
Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay
When: Sunday, Oct. 18, 8:20 p.m. ET
A classic NFC rivalry, the Cowboys and Packers will go head-to-head in prime time in Week 6. This is the second revenge game for Micah Parsons, who Dallas traded to Green Bay last summer. The last time these two teams faced off the game ended in a tie. May someone come away with the win in this rematch.
Week 7
Kansas City Chiefs at Seattle Seahawks
Where: Lumen Field, Seattle
When: Sunday, Oct. 25, 8:20 p.m. ET
The 2025 Super Bowl champs will take on the 2022 and 2023 Super Bowl winner when the Chiefs and Seahawks meet up in Week 7. This game will also be a revenge matchup for running back Kenneth Walker III, who signed with the Chiefs in free agency a month after winning Super Bowl MVP for the Seahawks.
Week 8
Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Commanders
Where: Northwest Stadium, Landover, Md.
When: Sunday, Nov. 1, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Eagles-Commanders rivalry became exciting again with the arrival of Jayden Daniels in 2024, but Daniels was injured during both their games last season. If Daniels is healthy again, this should be another exciting NFC East dual.
Week 9
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Chicago Bears
Where: Soldier Field, Chicago
When: Sunday, Nov. 8, 8:20 p.m. ET
In between a couple of divisional games, NBC is holding an NFC matchup between the Buccaneers and Bears. These two teams haven’t faced off since early 2023, when the Bucs took down the Bears 27-17, before Caleb Williams was drafted.
Week 10
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals
Where: Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati
When: Sunday, Nov. 15, 8:20 p.m. ET
Last season, the Steelers delivered a classic on Thursday night as two 40-year-old quarterbacks in Aaron Rodgers and Joe Flacco dueled. The Steelers don’t know if Rodgers will be back and the Bengals are hoping Joe Burrow is still healthy by the time these NFC North squads face off in mid-November.
Week 11
Minnesota Vikings at San Francisco 49ers
Where: Estadio Azteca, Mexico City
When: Sunday, Nov. 22, 8:20 p.m. ET
Sunday Night Football is heading abroad for the Vikings-49ers Week 11 clash, which will take part in Mexico City. The Vikings have been a tough opponent for the 49ers as of late, with Brian Flores’s defense outwitting Kyle Shanahan’s offense in each of the past two games.
Week 12
New England Patriots at Los Angeles Chargers
Where: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, Calif.
When: Sunday, Nov. 29, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Chargers will host the Patriots nearly 10 months after their wild-card loss to the eventual AFC champions. Hopefully this time around the Chargers and Patriots offensive lines are better capable of protecting two great quarterbacks, Justin Herbert and Drake Maye.
Week 13
Houston Texans at Pittsburgh Steelers
Where: Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh
When: Sunday, Dec. 6, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Texans and Steelers will face off on Sunday Night Football in another rematch of last season’s wild-card games. The contest was close until the fourth quarter, with both Aaron Rodgers and C.J. Stroud struggling against two stout defenses. Here’s hoping this game will prove more entertaining.
Week 14
Buffalo Bills at Green Bay Packers
Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay
When: Sunday, Dec. 13, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Bills and Packers will face off for the first time since 2022, when Aaron Rodgers was still quarterbacking Green Bay. A rare clash between two teams from different conferences, the Bills and Packers will each look to get the win and help their playoff odds.
Week 15
Detroit Lions at Minnesota Vikings
Where: U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis
When: Sunday, Dec. 20, 8:20 p.m. ET
A classic NFC North rivalry game heads to Sunday Night Football in Week 15 this year. The Lions and Vikings missed the postseason in 2025, but could be fighting for a division crown or playoff spot by the time this game rolls around. The Vikings surprisingly swept the Lions last season, and will look to repeat that this year too.
Week 16
Jacksonville Jaguars at Dallas Cowboys
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
When: Sunday, Dec. 27, 8:20 p.m. ET
A rare inter-conference matchup, the Jaguars head to Dallas to take on the Cowboys in prime time. The Jaguars and Cowboys haven’t faced off since 2022, when Jacksonville won 40-34. With these two offenses, another high-scoring affair could be on its way.
Week 17
Philadelphia Eagles at San Francisco 49ers
Where: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, Calif.
When: Sunday, Jan. 3, 8:20 p.m. ET
A rematch of the 49ers’ wild-card victory over the Eagles last season, Philadelphia heads to San Francisco for its penultimate game of the regular season.
Week 18
TBD
The final Sunday Night Football game of the regular season traditionally goes to two teams fighting for a playoff spot and/or division title. This game will be announced after Week 17.
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Eva Geitheim is an NFL writer at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in December 2024, she wrote for Newsweek, Gymnastics Now and Dodgers Nation. A Bay Area native, she has a bachelor’s in communications from UCLA. When not writing, she can be found baking or rewatching Gilmore Girls.