Could the Seahawks open the 2026 regular season and raise their Super Bowl banner on a Wednesday?
They just might, according to a report Tuesday from The Wall Street Journal stating that the first game of the regular season will be on Wednesday, Sept. 9 and televised on NBC.
The regular-season opener is typically hosted by the defending Super Bowl champion and played on a Thursday.
However, as the WSJ report stated, the Thursday game is expected to feature the Rams and 49ers playing the first-ever regular-season game in Melbourne, Australia.
That will cause the regular-season opener hosted by the Super Bowl champs — in this case, the Seahawks — to move up a day to Wednesday.
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Rashid Shaheed points to the flag for defensive pass interference that gives Seattle first and 10 from the Niners 17 in the third. The Seattle Seahawks played the San Francisco 49ers in the final game of the regular season Saturday, January 3, 2026 at Levi Stadium, in Santa Clara, CA. 232119
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Doing so will require some juggling as the Sounders have a home game scheduled that night against Kansas City at 7:30 p.m., while the Mariners have a home game scheduled that night against the Texas Rangers at 6:40 p.m.
But it’s thought that accommodations can be made to allow for the Seahawks to host on a Wednesday night.
The Mariners are also scheduled to play Texas at home on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 1:10 p.n.
There had been some rumblings that the Australia game might be Wednesday, which would have meant the Seahawks not opening the regular season as has been the custom for defending Super Bowl champs.
Now to the question of who the Seahawks will play in that game.
Rematches against the Rams and 49ers — the two teams the Seahawks had to beat in the NFC playoffs to get to the Super Bowl — are obviously out.
Any of the remaining seven teams they are scheduled to host remain available — Arizona, Dallas, New York Giants, Kansas City, Los Angeles Chargers, Chicago and New England, the team the Seahawks beat 29-13 to win the Super Bowl last Feb. 8.
The full schedule is expected to be released sometime in mid-May. However, the dates and times of some individual games could be announced before then.
Seahawks make signings official
The Seahawks have made a handful of signings official over the last few days of players who had earlier agreed to contracts including cornerback Noah Igbinoghene, defensive tackle Brandon Pili and safety Rodney Thomas III.
The Seahawks also announced that running back George Holani signed his exclusive free agent tender.
Igbinoghene was one of two cornerbacks the Seahawks agreed to terms with over the weekend to fill out depth after choosing not to re-sign Riq Woolen. They also agreed to terms with Shemar Jean-Charles, who spent last season on their practice squad.
Igbinoghene was the 30th overall pick of the Dolphins in 2020 and spent the last two seasons with the Washington Commanders.
He said in an interview with Seahawks.com announcing his signing that they talked to him about a contract a year ago.
“Had an opportunity to come here last year, didn’t choose to, so now, choose the right side this time,” he said. “So, I’m excited to see how it goes. I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Seahawks players earn NFL bonuses
The NFL revealed this week that a handful of Seahawks were among the players who received part of what was a pool of more than $542 million in Performance-Based Pay for their performance during the 2025 season.
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As sated by the league, “the Performance-Based Pay program is a collectively bargained benefit that compensates all players based upon their playing time and salary levels.”
The money does not count against the salary cap or otherwise impact a player’s contractual status.
Getting the biggest bonus for the Seahawks was right guard Anthony Bradford ($1.098 million), followed by linebacker Drake Thomas ($1.022 million). Others who also got significant paydays were safety Ty Okada (just under $961,000), center Jalen Sundell (just under $900,000) and tight end AJ Barner (just under $850,000).
Bob Condotta: bcondotta@seattletimes.com. Bob Condotta is a sports reporter at The Seattle Times who primarily covers the Seahawks but also dabbles in other sports. He has worked at The Times since 2002, reporting on University of Washington Husky football and basketball for his first 10 years at the paper before switching to the Seahawks in 2013.