NFL reduces Sunday afternoon games to 197 for 2026 season
Yahoo Sports • 1 min read • Latest: Jun 1, 2026, 3:30 PM
Last updated Jun 1, 2026
The NFL will feature 197 Sunday afternoon games in 2026, a slight decrease from 198 in 2025 and 211 in 2021. The trend reflects a shift driven by the addition of international games, standalone streaming options, and weeknight broadcasts, which have segmented the traditional Sunday schedule. Max St. John, the NFL manager of broadcast planning and scheduling analytics, acknowledged this change as a concern, emphasizing the need for quality matchups even when the number of games is lower. The league aims to strategically maintain the prominence of the Sunday afternoon window despite the reduced slate.
- •NFL schedules one fewer game than last year and 14 fewer than in 2021.
- •Reduced games attributed to increased international and streaming broadcasts.
- •NFL strategizes to prioritize quality matchups in diminished game weeks.
- •St. John cites the one o'clock slot as crucial for NFL viewership.
- 3:30 PMYahoo Sports — NFL exec defends shrinking Sunday afternoon window
"Since the 2026 NFL schedule dropped two weeks ago, there’s been a fair amount of hand-wringing about what’s happened to Sunday afternoon football. The league will air 197 Sunday afternoon games in 2026, down from 198 in 2025 and 211 in 2021, the first year of the expanded 18-week schedule. It’s been a slow but…
Sources
External linksOriginal reporting and copyright belong to the linked sources. SportsNewsReport.com aggregates and links — it does not republish full articles.
Related Stories
Last 14 days- NFL•Jun 2, 2026, 7:17 PMRaiders' Ashton Jeanty gets bad news in new-look Vegas offense, but it doesn't make much sense
- NFL•Jun 2, 2026, 7:14 PMBrowns GM Andrew Berry breaks silence on reported Myles Garrett to Rams trade
FootballNFL•Jun 2, 2026, 7:12 PMDolphins sign former first-round pick WR after first minicamp session- NFL•Jun 2, 2026, 7:11 PMA.J. Brown dishes on relationship with Jalen Hurts after Patriots trade
- NFL•Jun 2, 2026, 7:10 PMMyles Garrett sends message to Cleveland Browns fans after trade to Rams
- NFL•Jun 2, 2026, 7:09 PMLongtime NFL Agent Expects Bad Blood Between Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy
