5 NFL Teams Won’t Have A Single Primetime Game In 2026

This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.

The 2026 NFL schedule release became a popular topic around the league again. With the league still a few months away from a new season, fans make the most of any update they can have about the competition.

The release included a couple of surprises, including a primetime game between the New Orleans Saints and the Atlanta Falcons in Week 4. Even though both teams posted negative records last season, Roger Goodell wanted to celebrate 20 years since the Superdome opened its doors after Hurricane Katrina.

The decision was controversial, but understandable to some extent. On the other hand, the league completely snubbed a series of teams when assigning primetime slots.

5 NFL Teams Won’t Play In Primetime Next Season

While some teams draw plenty of attention thanks to their history and relevance in the league, others will have to wait before finding themselves playing a primetime game.

This season, five organizations won’t have a single primetime matchup — namely the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders and the Tennessee Titans.

The common factor between these teams is that they are in the middle of rebuilding processes, and have little to nothing to show the public. Perhaps the idea of seeing the renewed Raiders, or to see how Cam Ward performs in his second season, could appeal to some, but other than that, they have nothing.

2026 will see the league play games on all but one day of the week for the first time ever. Unfortunately for some, those teams will have to stick with the regular programming until they find a way to be relevant again.