Key Takeaways
- The 2026 NFL schedule releases Thursday, May 14 at 5 p.m. PT. You can watch on Raiders.com, the Raiders app, NFL Network, ESPN2, and NFL+.
- The opponents are already set: Eight home games, nine on the road, and a slate that includes every AFC West opponent twice plus the usual cross-conference matchups.
- This is the first schedule release under Klint Kubiak and the first with Fernando Mendoza as the starting quarterback. The debut calendar matters.
The News
We know who. Now we need to know when.
The NFL confirmed Thursday that the full 2026 schedule drops May 14 at 5 p.m. PT, and the Raiders will reveal their slate across Raiders.com, the Raiders app, and all social platforms. For the first time, the complete 32-team schedule release will also air on NFL Network, ESPN2, the ESPN App, and NFL+.
The Silver and Black enter 2026 with the following opponents locked in:
Home: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Tennessee Titans.
Away: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints.
That is eight home games and nine on the road. Not an even split, but nothing new for a franchise that has gotten used to playing from behind in the AFC West.
The bigger storyline is what this schedule will mean for the new regime.
WALK THE PLANK
Here is what the schedule release actually tells you: when the pressure hits.
Every fan base says they want to see where the tough stretch is or find the primetime games. But for this Raiders team, the calendar is going to be a referendum on how the front office thinks Mendoza and Kubiak will handle early adversity. If the first month is brutal, it sets a tone. If they catch some breaks in September, that changes everything.
The AFC West has been owned by Kansas City for what feels like forever. The Broncos and Chargers are both improved. The schedule will not do the Raiders any favors. But the question isn’t just who they play. It’s when.
Fernando Mendoza walking into Arrowhead in September is different than going there in December. Kubiak calling his first game against the Patriots in Foxborough is different than a November home game. The calendar matters in ways that don’t show up in the record.
Klint Kubiak’s first season. Mendoza’s first year. A team that went 3-14 last year and is trying to end a 23-year AFC West title drought. The schedule will show us exactly how patient ownership is willing to be, and whether the early schedule sets up a run or sets up a rebuilding year disguised as something else.
May 14 at 5 p.m. PT. Circle it.
