Key Takeaways

• The Raiders have zero primetime games in 2026. Every single game is a Sunday afternoon matchup. No Thursday nights. No Monday nights.
• The full slate is built around Sundays, with early-season road games against the Chargers and Saints before the home opener against the Chiefs in Week 4.
• The bye falls in Week 13, late in the season. The schedule closes at Arrowhead in Week 18.
• There is no nationally televised stage for Fernando Mendoza’s debut. The NFL did not put the Raiders in the spotlight. That is an honest assessment of where this team stands.

The News

The schedule is out. And for the Raiders, it could not be more straightforward.

Las Vegas was not featured in a single primetime window when the full 2026 NFL schedule dropped Thursday. Every game on the calendar is a Sunday afternoon kickoff. That is not a punishment. That is the NFL telling you exactly what it thinks of this team, and the schedule itself agrees.

Here is the full slate:

• Week 1: vs Dolphins, Sunday Sept 13, 1:25 PM (FOX)
• Week 2: at Chargers, Sunday Sep 20, 1:05 PM (CBS)
• Week 3: at Saints, Sunday Sep 27, 10 AM (CBS)
• Week 4: vs Chiefs, Sunday Oct 4, 1:25 PM (CBS)
• Week 5: at Patriots, Sunday Oct 11, 10 AM (CBS)
• Week 6: vs Bills, Sunday Oct 18, 1:25 PM (CBS)
• Week 7: vs Rams, Sunday Oct 25, 1:25 PM (FOX)
• Week 8: at Jets, Sunday Nov 1, 10 AM (FOX)
• Week 9: at 49ers, Sunday Nov 8, 1:05 PM (CBS)
• Week 10: vs Seahawks, Sunday Nov 15, 1:05 PM (CBS)
• Week 11: at Broncos, Sunday Nov 22, 1:25 PM (CBS)
• Week 12: at Browns, Sunday Nov 29, 10 AM (FOX)
• Week 13: BYE
• Week 14: vs Chargers, Sunday Dec 13, 1:05 PM (CBS)
• Week 15: vs Broncos, Sunday Dec 20, 1:25 PM (CBS)
• Week 16: vs Titans, Sunday Dec 27, 1:05 PM (FOX)
• Week 17: at Cardinals, Sunday Jan 3, 1:05 PM (CBS)
• Week 18: at Chiefs, TBD

The early schedule is challenging. Road games in Los Angeles and New Orleans in September, then the home opener against Kansas City in Week 4. That is a real test right away for a team still finding itself.

The middle of the season brings a brutal stretch: at the 49ers, home against Seattle, then immediately at Denver and at Cleveland. The bye in Week 13 comes at a good time, just before the playoff push.

The finale at Arrowhead in Week 18 will have stakes one way or another.

WALK THE PLANK

The NFL chose not to put the Raiders on a single national stage. No Thursday Night Football. No Monday Night Football. All Sunday afternoons.

That is the league giving you the honest answer about what this team is right now. The Raiders went 3-14, drafted a 22-year-old quarterback first overall, and hired a new coaching staff. The NFL is not putting them in the primetime window while they figure out who they are.

There is no shame in that. The primetime spotlight burns young teams that are not ready for it. The Raiders need to fly under the radar, develop their kids, and earn the attention.

Mendoza’s debut will happen in a 1:25 PM window on FOX against Miami. That is perfect. No pressure. No national audience. Just football.

John Spytek keeps saying this is a rebuild. The schedule is built for one. No distractions. No primetime noise. Just Sundays to figure it out.