NFL releases 2026 schedule; Cowboys start tough

The NFL released its 2026 regular-season schedule on May 14, setting the league’s 18-week, 272-game slate and immediately shifting the conversation from dates to degree of difficulty. NFL.com followed with schedule-reaction coverage that ranked the teams facing the toughest road ahead, while team sites and local outlets began isolating the stretches most likely to shape early expectations. Dallas drew some of the sharpest attention, in part because of how its season opens. Philadelphia’s schedule also fed directly into betting markets, with DraftKings posting a 10.5 win total for the Eagles after the full slate became public. ### Why did Dallas become one of the first teams people singled out? The Athletic reported that only two of the Cowboys’ first seven games will be played at AT&T Stadium, a stretch that gives Dallas one of the more difficult openings on the 2026 calendar. DallasCowboys.com said the team will be among the NFL’s most traveled clubs this season and listed a regular-season trip to Rio de Janeiro in Week 3 against the Baltimore Ravens as part of that opening run. May 14 brought the full Cowboys schedule, and the club’s own site said Dallas will play six primetime games and make its first international regular-season appearance since 2014. The Cowboys are coming off a 7-9-1 finish in 2025, according to the team site, with Brian Schottenheimer entering his first season in charge. ### How are league analysts framing the toughest schedules? NFL.com on May 21 published a ranking of the five toughest 2026 schedules and included Dallas among the teams facing the most daunting slates. NFL Football Operations separately posted strength-of-schedule data based on opponents’ combined 2025 winning percentages, giving a league-produced benchmark for how difficult each team’s path looks before the season starts. (dallascowboys.com) NFL.com also carried broader schedule-release coverage examining how travel, rest, prime-time placement and outdoor games could affect teams over the course of the season. That framing has turned the release into more than a calendar event, with teams now being judged on sequencing as much as opponents. ### What does the Eagles number tell us? (nfl.com) NJ.com reported that DraftKings Sportsbook set Philadelphia’s regular-season win total at 10.5 after the 2026 schedule release. The outlet said the defending NFC East champion Eagles face a schedule that includes games against opponents such as the Rams and Seahawks, giving bettors an early line on how the market values the team before training camp. (nfl.com) NJ.com also flagged one difficult portion of the Eagles’ schedule in separate coverage, underscoring that Philadelphia’s path is being parsed not only through headline opponents but also through where the hardest games cluster. The 10.5 number does not come from the league; it comes from an early sportsbook assessment once the full schedule was known. (nj.com) ### When does the season actually start, and what comes next? The NFL said on May 14 that the 2026 regular season will open on Wednesday, September 9, in Seattle and conclude with Week 18 games on January 9 and January 10. NFL Football Operations said the schedule includes 12 rematches from the 2025 playoffs and 13 Super Bowl rematches across the season. (nj.com) The next phase is not another release but on-field preparation. OTAs, minicamps and training camp will fill the gap before Week 1, while the full week-by-week schedule remains posted on NFL.com and the league’s football operations site for team-by-team breakdowns. (nfl.com) (media.nfl.com)