A week-by-week breakdown of the New England Patriots’ full 2026 schedule.
The National Football League has officially released the schedule for all 272 regular season games in the upcoming 2026 season.
For the New England Patriots, their 2026 gauntlet projects a much different road to success than their previous campaign. With a .531 opponent winning percentage heading into the new year, New England ranks sixth in strength of schedule league-wide, as opposed to their .429 opposing winning percentage (third-lowest in the NFL) entering the 2025 season.
In addition to their six division contests against the Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, and New York Jets, the Patriots are set to take on the NFC North (Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, and Minnesota Vikings) and AFC West (Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas Raiders, and Los Angeles Chargers). New England will also face-off with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Seattle Seahawks — a Super Bowl LX rematch that kicks off the 2026 NFL season.
Here’s the Patriots full 2026 schedule, week-by-week:
- Week 1: @ Seattle Seahawks (Wednesday, Sept. 9 at 8:20 p.m. ET)
- Week 2: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (Sunday, Sept. 20 at 1:00 p.m.)
- Week 3: @ Jacksonville Jaguars (Sunday, Sept. 27 at 1:00 p.m. ET)
- Week 4: @ Buffalo Bills (Sunday, Oct. 4 at 1:00 p.m. ET)
- Week 5: vs. Las Vegas Raiders (Sunday, Oct. 11 at 1:00 p.m. ET)
- Week 6: vs. New York Jets (Sunday, Oct. 18 at 1:00 p.m. ET)
- Week 7: @ Chicago Bears (Thursday, Oct. 22 at 8:15 p.m. ET)
- Week 8: @ Miami Dolphins (Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1:00 p.m. ET)
- Week 9: vs. Green Bay Packers (Sunday, Nov. 8 at 4:25 p.m. ET)
- Week 10: @ Detroit Lions (Sunday, Nov. 15 at 9:30 a.m. ET in Munich, Germany)
- Week 11: BYE
- Week 12: @ Los Angeles Chargers (Sunday, Nov. 29 at 8:20 p.m. ET)
- Week 13: vs. Buffalo Bills (Sunday, Dec. 6 at 4:25 p.m. ET)
- Week 14: vs. Minnesota Vikings (Thursday, Dec. 10 at 8:15 p.m. ET)
- Week 15: @ Kansas City Chiefs (Monday, Dec. 21 at 8:15 p.m. ET)
- Week 16: @ New York Jets (Sunday, Dec. 27 at 1:00 p.m. ET)
- Week 17: vs. Denver Broncos (Jan. 2-4)
- Week 18: vs. Miami Dolphins (Jan. 9-10)
New England is currently slated to appear in five primetime games:
- Week 1 at the Seattle Seahawks (NFL Kickoff Game—Wednesday Night Football)
- Week 7 at the Chicago Bears (Thursday Night Football)
- Week 12 at the Los Angeles Chargers (Sunday Night Football)
- Week 14 vs. the Minnesota Vikings (Thursday Night Football)
- Week 15 at the Kansas City Chiefs (Monday Night Football)
They’ll also play a standalone game in Munich, Germany, against the Detroit Lions at 9:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, November 15 as part of the NFL’s International Games.
In 2025, the Patriots were originally scheduled to participate in three primetime games: Week 5 at Buffalo (23-20 win) Week 11 vs. the New York Jets (27-14 win), and Week 13 vs. the New York Giants (33-15 win).
The NFL begins “flexing” games in and out of primetime slots in Week 5, and New England was a beneficiary of that last season. Their Week 16 matchup at the Baltimore Ravens was originally scheduled as a 1:00 p.m. kickoff, but was moved into the Sunday Night Football slot ahead of game week. The Patriots overcame a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat Baltimore, 28-24, and finished the regular season a perfect 4-0 in primetime games.
New England will be tested in 2026 with one of the NFL’s more difficult schedules. Fresh off of a Super Bowl berth, their first-place schedule comes as no surprise — but will present a much more challenging road back. We’ll see if the reinforcements the Patriots acquired this offseason are enough to keep the team on-track for another deep playoff push this fall.
Which games are you most looking forward to during the 2026 season? How do you think New England’s record will compare to last year’s? Let us know in the comments section below.
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