NFL Season Opens Tonight With Super Bowl Rematch as Seahawks Host Patriots
The 2026 NFL season begins on Wednesday night at Lumen Field, where the Seattle Seahawks host the New England Patriots in a rematch of last season's Super Bowl.
Kick-off is at 8:20pm Eastern, with the game shown on NBC and Peacock in the US. Seattle won Super Bowl LX 29-13 at Levi's Stadium in February.
A Rematch to Start the Year
It is only the third time the two Super Bowl participants have met in the opening week of the following season, as well as just the second Wednesday opener in league history.
Drake Maye leads the Patriots offence against a Seattle side quarterbacked by Sam Darnold. New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has said the rematch will be a different game to the Super Bowl, arguing the lessons taken from that defeat will benefit the coaching staff.
History favours the hosts. Since 2004, defending champions have won 16 of their 21 season openers, though rarely have those matchups been against the team they beat in the Super Bowl the previous yaer.
New England resolved one piece of outstanding business hours before kick-off, agreeing a four-year contract extension worth $135 million with cornerback Christian Gonzalez. He had declined to say earlier in the week whether he would play the opener without a new deal, telling reporters only that he was focused on the day in front of him.
Australia Hosts a Game for the First Time
The following night brings a first for the league, with the San Francisco 49ers facing the Los Angeles Rams at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. It is the NFL's first regular-season game played in Australia and will be streamed on Netflix.
The 49ers have confirmed that defensive end Nick Bosa will play after his recovery from a knee injury, with tight end George Kittle also described by the club as trending in the right direction following his Achilles problem.
The Rams will be without Aaron Donald, who has been ruled out for Week 1. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year came out of retirement late last month on a one-year deal worth $20 million, and head coach Sean McVay had declined to commit to a timeline for his return. Los Angeles also traded for reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett in June and have quarterback Matthew Stafford returning after an MVP season.
McVay has taken an unusual approach to the trip, opting for late travel to Melbourne rather than arriving early to acclimatise.
Season Structure
This is the 107th NFL season and runs across 18 weeks and 272 games, concluding on 10 January 2027. The playoffs begin six days later, with Super Bowl LXI scheduled for 14 February 2027 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
The salary cap was set at $301.2 million per team, an increase of $22 million on last season and a record for the league.
The Melbourne fixture is one of nine international games this season spread across four continents, with matches also scheduled in Munich, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro and Paris among others.
Commissioner Roger Goodell agreed a contract extension through the 2030 season earlier this week, his fifth extension since taking the role.
