NFL Season Structure: How 17 Games Work

Since 2021, the NFL plays a 17-game regular season, up from 16 games. The extra game was added as part of the 2020 CBA, with the corresponding reduction in preseason from 4 to 3 games. Each team plays its divisional opponents twice (6 games), one full division from each conference (8 games), and additional cross-conference matchups to reach 17 total.

Bye weeks occur between Weeks 5 and 14. Every team gets one bye. Coaches jealously protect bye week placement — a team with a Week 7 bye before a tough stretch plays a very different game than one that rests in Week 13 before the final push. Fantasy managers must track byes obsessively because starting a player on a bye is the most preventable mistake in fantasy football.

International Games

The 2026 season features a record nine international games across four continents and seven countries — Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro, London (three games), Paris, Madrid, Munich, and Mexico City. International games count as home games for one team — the visiting team's fans must travel internationally to see their "home" game. Jaguars fans, notably, travel to London almost every year, and in 2026 Jacksonville plays back-to-back London home games for the first time in franchise history.