NFL will dilute product even further by opening season on a Wednesday

The 2026–27 NFL season will reportedly begin on a Wednesday this year, with the usual Thursday game played in Melbourne, Australia.

Unlike the past two seasons, the league cannot schedule a game on the opening Friday of the season because it falls in the second week of September (not the first). The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 prohibits the NFL from broadcasting games from the second Friday in September until the second Saturday in December, protecting both high school and college football from professional competition.