With a record-setting NFL Draft in Pittsburgh now in the books, the league’s focus increasingly turns to the upcoming schedule release, and more changes are expected in the coming days as the slate is finalized.
Unlike last year’s draft, the league did not use the event to disclose a specific date for the schedule release. Instead, the NFL merely said before Thursday’s first round started that the much-anticipated drop was “coming soon.” Based on prior practice and upcoming broadcast network events, though, the full release will likely happen on Wed., May 13.
That date would mirror last year’s timing, and as the mid-May date approaches, several additional elements are known.
- The NFL did unveil during Friday’s second round the full matchup for its upcoming international game in Rio de Janeiro, one of a record nine global games planned for the 2026 season. The Cowboys, the previously announced “home” team for the contest, will face the Ravens. The game, part of Week 3, will happen on Sept. 27 at 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS.
- Most of the league’s rights holders have each planned upfront presentations for the week of May 11 to detail their planned programming for the upcoming broadcast season. The NFL, already the most-watched content in all of U.S. television, will be a central element of those events, and the networks will unveil a sampling of featured games there, such as holiday broadcasts. Amazon, Fox, and NBC each have upfronts planned for May 11, while ESPN parent company Disney will present theirs the next day.
- There will very likely be several new wrinkles in the schedule this year, including a potential game on Thanksgiving Eve. Efforts such as this would seek to advance the league’s goals to turn more of the 272 regular-season games into standalone showcases, as well as increasingly leverage holiday periods that frequently drive banner viewership for the NFL.
- There already have been notable shifts confirmed, including the move of the season-opening game involving the Super Bowl-champion Seahawks to Wed., Sept. 9 to help accommodate a game in Australia the following day between the 49ers and Rams.
The results of the draft, led by No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders, will be one of many factors used to help develop the schedule.
Bigger Backdrop
As the NFL completes its 2026 regular-season schedule, two other major developments loom: an ongoing sale of rights to five games, and increasing political and regulatory pressure from Washington.
The league gained that game inventory as part of its complex equity deal with Disney, and prominent streamers Netflix andYouTube are among the interested parties. A finalized agreement, or multiple deals, are expected soon.
Meanwhile, there are at least four major different efforts unfolding in the nation’s capital probing the NFL’s media strategy. Most recently, league EVP of media distribution Hans Schroeder met with the Federal Communications Commission to detail the league’s continued focus on broadcast television—including its long-time practice of showing every game over the air in the home markets of the competing teams.
“I’m not sure there’s a single content owner, league, or otherwise that’s done more to support broadcast television than what we do,” Schroeder said recently.
Despite that ongoing stance, additional rights deals with streamers would likely elevate the political pressure on the NFL.
