Overview
- The league released the full 272-game slate on Thursday, May 14, laying out 18 weeks of games across four continents and windows from Wednesday through Monday.
- The season opens Wednesday, Sept. 9, with a Patriots–Seahawks Super Bowl rematch to clear room for a Thursday game in Australia, part of a record nine international dates.
- Prime-time exposure is uneven, with the Bills getting seven night games while five teams — the Jets, Titans, Raiders, Cardinals and Dolphins — have none at launch under current flex rules.
- Early strength-of-schedule reads diverge by team, with reports pegging Miami near the top for difficulty and naming the Browns and Broncos among more favorable draws, while Warren Sharp’s projections list the Lions as having the easiest full-season path and the Cardinals and Dolphins the hardest.
- Fairness questions surfaced around rest and travel, as the Eagles and Chargers face four opponents coming off byes, only three international games are followed by an immediate bye, and 14 clubs never see a foe off extra rest.