Drake Maye finished as runner-up for the MVP award last season.
Drake Maye finished as runner-up for the MVP award last season.Barry Chin/Globe Staff
The full NFL schedule will be released on Thursday night, but some of the Patriots’ 2026 slate is already confirmed or swirling around the rumor mill.
New England will head to Germany on Nov. 15 to take on the Lions in Munich, the only game confirmed on the schedule so far.
The Patriots will find out the rest of their path back to the playoffs Thursday. That path will be a little more difficult this season, with New England facing a tougher schedule (on paper) after winning the AFC East in 2025.
That means the Patriots will face the AFC’s other reigning divisional champs in the Steelers, Broncos, and Jaguars. They will also face all four teams from the NFC North, one of the best divisions in football last year.
The full NFL schedule will be released at 8 p.m. Thursday. Here’s what we know about the Patriots’ 2026 schedule so far.
What games do we already know about?
Only one game is already confirmed on the Patriots’ schedule: New England will take on Detroit in Germany on Nov. 15.
That reveal came as part of the international schedule release, a nine-game slate that will start with the Rams and 49ers squaring off in Melbourne, Australia, on Sept. 10.
Along with the games in Munich and Melbourne, there will be three in London and one each in Madrid, Mexico City, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro.
While no other Patriots games have been confirmed, there have been reports that New England will head to Seattle on opening night for a Super Bowl rematch against the Seahawks on Wednesday, Sept. 9.
Who will the Patriots face in 2026?
While we don’t know most of the schedule specifics for 2026 yet, we do know which teams the Patriots will face this season.
Along with their usual home-and-homes with their divisional rivals in the Jets, Dolphins, and Bills, the Patriots will play a first-place schedule in 2026, taking on the other reigning three divisional champions from the AFC.
New England will take on the Broncos and Steelers at Gillette Stadium and head on the road to face the Jaguars.
The AFC East is matched up with the NFC North and AFC West, so the Patriots will also face the Packers, Vikings, and Raiders at home and the Chiefs, Bears, Chargers, and Lions on the road (though the game against Detroit will be played in Munich).
The Seahawks round out the Patriots’ 2026 opponent list, with that game to be played in Seattle.
Here’s a full rundown of New England’s opponents:
Home opponents
Bills
Dolphins
Jets
Broncos
Raiders
Packers
Vikings
Steelers
Road opponents
Bills
Dolphins
Jets
Bears
Lions
Chiefs
Chargers
Seahawks
Jaguars
Amin Touri can be reached at amin.touri@globe.com.