The NFL has nearly consumed the full 365 day calendar. Training camp kicks off in July, the preseason begins in August, the regular season follows at the beginning of September, the postseason runs into the beginning of February, and draft season is carried by events like the combine and owners meetings until draft weekend in late April. Then just when you think there’s a breather before OTA’s pick up in May through to June, the NFL makes a big show out of their schedule release.

The league doesn’t announce when exactly they release the schedule until the day is nearly here, but history gives us a pretty consistent sense of timing in early May. Except this year, we might be getting a bit of a delay.

NFL Schedule release rumored to be pushed back a week

Schedule release day is traditionally around the second Wednesday of May. That would be next week on the 13th. But per CBS Sports’ John Breech, NFL V.P. of broadcast planning Mike North has said that it may end up being on the week of the 18th instead.

North addressed the schedule release in an appearance on the It’s Always Game Day in Buffalo podcast. “Most fans know full well that the schedule comes out in mid-May now. That’s what we’ve done the last five or six years. That’s sort of our target. Is there any magic to May 12, 13, 14? No. Is there any real downside to (May) 19, 20, or 21? No.”

North went on to say that the “second week in May has been our target the last few years, but I don’t know that it’s impossible to think about that third week in May.”

The Titans’ 2026 opponents have been set since the regular season ended in early January. They play six of their games against the division each year, both hosting and visiting the Colts, Texans, and Jaguars. Their divisional partners this year are the AFC North and NFC East. So they’ll visit the Ravens, Bengals, Cowboys and Giants. They’ll host the Browns, Steelers, Eagles, and Commanders. Then rounding out the schedule is some fellow fourth-place finishers: they’ll host the Jets, and visit the Raiders and (in a cruel twist of fate) the Lions.

Why the change? A leading theory is that the NFL’s five game package that is currently being bid on doesn’t have a home quite yet. YouTube TV has reportedly been the frontrunner to land this package of games, but we’ve heard no final news on that front.

The Titans have plenty of juicy revenge game opportunities on the schedule this year that league planners could exploit. The Giants matchup will be the Brian Daboll vs. Brian Callahan & Dennard Wilson bowl, not to mention the half-dozen other former players and coaches involved. The Raiders matchup will be the Nick Holz revenge game on top of a clash between no. 1 overall QBs (if Mendoza is starting by then…). And of course, the Jets game will be a Robert Saleh revenge spot that’s sure to be a talking point all week. give us something fun for Week 1, schedule makers!