The NFL released the full 2026 regular-season schedule on Thursday, detailing 17 games for the New England Patriots, including five primetime appearances and one international matchup. The schedule features a season-opening rematch of Super Bowl LX and the team’s fifth-highest total travel distance in the league.
Season Structure
The Patriots’ season begins on Wednesday, September 9, against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington. Their home opener is scheduled for Week 2 against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium.
The team’s bye week occurs in Week 11, following their international game.
Primetime and Special Games
New England is scheduled for five primetime games:
- Week 1 (Wednesday): at Seattle Seahawks
- Week 7 (Thursday Night Football): at Chicago Bears
- Week 12 (Sunday Night Football): at Los Angeles Chargers
- Week 14 (Thursday Night Football): vs. Minnesota Vikings
- Week 15 (Monday Night Football): at Kansas City Chiefs
The Week 17 game against the Denver Broncos is a candidate for potential flex scheduling.
International Game
The Patriots are scheduled to play the Detroit Lions in Week 10 at Munich, Germany.
Travel
According to the NFL’s schedule release, the Patriots will travel a total of 27,590 air miles during the 2026 season, which ranks fifth-highest among all teams.
2026 Week-by-Week Schedule
The following is the confirmed weekly schedule for the New England Patriots:
- Week 1: at Seattle Seahawks (Wednesday, Sept. 9)
- Week 2: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
- Week 3: at Jacksonville Jaguars
- Week 4: at Buffalo Bills
- Week 5: vs. Las Vegas Raiders
- Week 6: vs. New York Jets
- Week 7: at Chicago Bears (Thursday Night Football)
- Week 8: at Miami Dolphins
- Week 9: vs. Green Bay Packers
- Week 10: vs. Detroit Lions (Munich, Germany)
- Week 11: Bye
- Week 12: at Los Angeles Chargers (Sunday Night Football)
- Week 13: vs. Buffalo Bills
- Week 14: vs. Minnesota Vikings (Thursday Night Football)
- Week 15: at Kansas City Chiefs (Monday Night Football)
- Week 16: at New York Jets
- Week 17: vs. Denver Broncos (time TBD)
- Week 18: vs. Miami Dolphins (time TBD)