Kansas City Chiefs Schedule 2026: Dates, Times, TV Every Game

Kansas City opens the 2026 season on Monday Night Football, hosting Denver at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Sept 14. It’s the first time since 2017 the Chiefs have opened on a Monday, and it starts a schedule built around six prime-time games and one brutal stretch of travel.

Note one detail several schedule sites get wrong: the Week 1 Denver game is at Arrowhead, not in Denver. The Chiefs visit Denver in Week 8.

2026 Team Schedule

Kansas City Chiefs Schedule

AFC West · GEHA Field at Arrowhead · Andy Reid (14th year)

Home Games

Bye Week

Prime-Time Games

Nov 26

Circle It: at Buffalo

Week	Date	Opponent	Time (ET) / TV	Result
1	Mon, Sept 14	vs Denver Broncos	8:15 PM · ESPN	—
2	Sun, Sept 20	vs Indianapolis Colts	8:20 PM · NBC	—
3	Sun, Sept 27	at Miami Dolphins	1:00 PM · CBS	—
4	Sun, Oct 4	at Las Vegas Raiders	4:25 PM · CBS	—
5	—	BYE WEEK	—	—
6	Sun, Oct 18	vs Los Angeles Chargers	4:25 PM · CBS	—
7	Sun, Oct 25	at Seattle Seahawks	8:20 PM · NBC	—
8	Sun, Nov 1	at Denver Broncos	4:25 PM · CBS	—
9	Sun, Nov 8	vs New York Jets	1:00 PM · CBS	—
10	Sun, Nov 15	at Atlanta Falcons	1:00 PM · CBS	—
11	Sun, Nov 22	vs Arizona Cardinals	1:00 PM · CBS	—
12	Thu, Nov 26	at Buffalo Bills (Thanksgiving)	8:20 PM · NBC	—
13	Thu, Dec 3	at Los Angeles Rams	8:15 PM · Prime	—
14	Sun, Dec 13	at Cincinnati Bengals	4:25 PM · FOX	—
15	Mon, Dec 21	vs New England Patriots	8:15 PM · ESPN	—
16	Sun, Dec 27	vs San Francisco 49ers	4:25 PM · CBS	—
17	TBD	at Los Angeles Chargers	TBD	—
18	TBD	vs Las Vegas Raiders	TBD	—

Weeks 17 and 18 dates, times and networks are announced later in the season. Prime-time games can move under flexible scheduling.

Games That Will Define the Chiefs’ Season

Wk 1 vs Broncos	A Monday night opener at Arrowhead against a division rival, and Kansas City’s first look at itself after a 6-11 season derailed by Patrick Mahomes’ ACL injury.
Wk 7 at Seahawks	Sunday night in Seattle against the reigning Super Bowl champions. The toughest road environment on the schedule and a genuine measuring stick.
Wks 12-13	Back-to-back Thursday nights on the road — Buffalo on Thanksgiving, then the Rams six days later. An unusually punishing scheduling quirk.
Wks 12-14	Three straight road games at Buffalo, the Rams and Cincinnati. If the Chiefs are chasing a playoff spot, this is where the season is decided.

Nine Playoff Opponents

Kansas City faces nine teams that made the 2025 playoffs. Its opponents’ combined 2025 record of 155-134-0 (.536) is the fifth-toughest strength of schedule in the league.

An Early Bye

The Week 5 bye is one of the earliest in the league, meaning the Chiefs play 13 straight games to close the regular season.

Ten National Windows

Six prime-time games — three at Arrowhead — and at least 10 nationally televised appearances in all.

How the Schedule Sets Up

Two home prime-time games to open should give Kansas City a fast start, then road trips to Miami and Las Vegas before the earliest bye on the calendar. The Chargers at home and the Sunday night trip to Seattle bookend a difficult October. November opens with the Denver rematch and settles into a manageable run of Jets and Cardinals at Arrowhead.

Then it turns severe: Buffalo on Thanksgiving night, the Rams on a short week, and Cincinnati, all on the road. New England on Monday night and San Francisco at home follow before two AFC West games to close. Coming off 6-11 and a lost season, Andy Reid’s 14th Chiefs team needs the front half to bank wins before that November-December gauntlet. For roster context, see our NFL roster cuts tracker. Schedules and flexible-scheduling rules are published by the NFL.

The Bottom Line

Eight home games, a Monday night opener against Denver, an early Week 5 bye, and back-to-back Thursday road games in late November — Kansas City’s 2026 schedule is front-loaded with opportunity and back-loaded with travel. Bookmark this page; results and Week 17-18 details are updated throughout the season.