The NFL has transformed its entire calendar into an event-driven spectacle, making the schedule release a highly anticipated day for fans each offseason. This excitement extends to the league’s broadcast partners, who engage by promoting their biggest games through morning shows on CBS, NBC, and Fox. In addition, the NFL Network features special programming to dissect the schedule, while websites like ours meticulously analyze the marquee matchups, declaring winners and losers before the first snap is taken.
This year’s schedule release promises several highlights, including seven international games, with the NFL set to make its first-ever trips to Ireland and Spain. The league will also return to Brazil for a game in Week 1, although the matchup has yet to be assigned to a network. Notably, Christmas Day will feature a tripleheader: two games on Netflix and one on Amazon, with matchups still to be determined. One team is particularly eager to become the Christmas equivalent of the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving.
With so much at stake, anticipation builds as the NFL prepares to unveil its schedule next month. Mike North, the NFL’s VP of broadcast planning and scheduling, revealed on the It’s Always Gameday in Buffalo podcast that the league aims for a schedule release “somewhere in the May 13, 14, or 15 range.”
However, several factors need to align before the scheduling process can advance. The first is the NFL Draft, which complicates predictions about which teams will capture national interest, especially with potential game-changers like quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Additionally, marquee free agents, such as Aaron Rodgers, are still deciding their next moves.
Crafting the NFL schedule often resembles an art form more than a strict scientific approach. While schedule makers must meet contractual obligations, they must also anticipate which teams will resonate with a national audience months ahead of the season. These decisions will spark discussions in the NFL community come mid-May, even as we inevitably grumble about whatever less-than-appealing matchup we find ourselves facing on Thursday Night Football in mid-October.
