2026 National Football League The schedule will be released Thursday at 8 p.m. ET, but not every game deserves prime time. Some games read like punishment for teams drawn on fall Sundays.
Here are the five worst games of the upcoming season, based primarily on both teams’ 2025 win-loss records. This exercise includes a guardrail: No team appears on the roster more than once. Otherwise, the rankings will be read as a referendum on the Jets, Raiders or Browns, where the goal is a tie, not a stack. Okay, maybe a little stacked.
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As of this writing, most weeks are still to be determined. Some of the timeline leaks below have been confirmed. The schedule released Thursday night will address the remaining issues.
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Week TBD, Northwest Stadium (Landover, MD)
This was the most disappointing meeting of the past year. Washington fell to 5-12 from 12-5 and a berth in the 2024 NFC Championship Game after Jayden Daniels missed 10 games with knee, hamstring and elbow injuries. Kellen Moore is 6-11 in his first year at the helm in New Orleans, but rookie Tyler Shough has ignited hopes by going 4-1 in his last five starts and becoming a finalist for Offensive Rookie of the Year. Adam Peters invested heavily in defense this spring. The Commanders defeated the Saints 20-19 in their last meeting in 2024.
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Week TBD, Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, FL)
Entering 2026, the Dolphins are almost unrecognizable. Mike McDaniel is out; Jeff Hafley is in. Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, Bradley Chubb and Minkah Fitzpatrick are all gone. Malik Willis hits free agency to compete with 2025 seventh-rounder Quinn Ewers, who finished last season as the starter. The Bengals’ counterattack, with Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins still coming together, coupled with the same defense, gave up 492 points in 2025, the second-most in football. Cincinnati beat Miami 45-21 in Week 16 last December when Burrow threw four touchdowns to an already tanking Dolphins team.
8. Jackson Dart
Week 15: Sunday, December 20, 1 p.m. ET, MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, N.J.)
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The two 2025 bottom feeders will likely have meaningless games in December. The Browns averaged 15.8 points per game over the past two seasons, ranking last in the league. The Giants finished 4-13. Todd Monken is making his first head coaching start against former Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, who left Baltimore for New York after Brian Daboll was fired. Sophomore Jaxon Dart will be matched up against either Deshaun Watson, Dillon Gabriel, Shaddell Sanders (an inconsistent trio who will throw more interceptions than touchdowns as a starter in 2025), or possibly rookie Tyron Green from Arkansas. Kick-off time is buried in the 1pm window and has no national appeal.
Week TBD, State Farm Stadium (Glendale, AZ)
3-14 versus 3-14 in the desert. The Cardinals waived Jonathan Gannon, hired Mike LaFleur from the Rams and cut ties with Kyler Murray, leaving 33-year-old Jacoby Brissett at center. Arizona then took running back Jeremiyah Love third overall, marking a multi-year stretch. The Raiders switched from Pete Carroll to Clint Kubiak and drafted Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick, while their offense allowed just 241 points, the lowest in football. Both lists are still being assembled. The total point difference from last season is minus-324.
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6. Cam Ward
Week 1: Sunday, September 13, 1 p.m. ET, Nissan Stadium (Nashville, Tenn.)
The worst game of 2026 is also homecoming. Robert Saleh, who was fired by the Jets in October 2024 after a 20-36 record, took over the Titans, matching his old team’s 3-14 record. Saleh brought in Brian Daboll as offensive coordinator and raided his old roster, bringing in Jermaine Johnson, John Franklin Miles and Solomon Thomas. Aaron Glenn answered questions the following year with 35-year-old Geno Smith, who returned to New York from Las Vegas. Cam Ward tied for the league lead with 55 sacks in his rookie season, but faced a defense that gave up 503 points last season.
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