NBC has unveiled its complete slate of “Sunday Night Football” broadcasts for the 2026 NFL season, promising a schedule that blends traditional rivalries with a few fresh primetime experiments.
The season opens with a blockbuster
The first night of the regular season, slated for Wednesday, September 9, will feature a Super Bowl 60 rematch as the New England Patriots host the Seattle Seahawks, setting a high‑stakes tone for the weeks that follow.
The very next Sunday, September 13, the network will debut its first “Sunday Night Football” matchup with a clash between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants, a rivalry that has produced some of the most memorable moments in NFL history.
Marquee matchups on the horizon
Among the marquee pairings highlighted in the announcement are a Kansas City Chiefs‑Seattle Seahawks showdown and a Thanksgiving‑night thriller pitting the Chiefs against the Buffalo Bills, both games expected to draw massive viewership.
Frequency and focus
NBC notes that the Kansas City Chiefs and the Dallas Cowboys will each appear on the primetime stage three times throughout the season, underscoring their status as the league’s current ratings magnets.
Several franchises, including the Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Browns, Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders and Tennessee Titans, will not be part of the “Sunday Night Football” lineup, leaving the spotlight to a more select group of teams.
The schedule reflects NBC’s strategy to anchor its Sunday night programming with high‑profile games that can sustain audience engagement across the fall.