Why Cardinals Will Begin 2026 Training Camp Before Any Other NFL Team

The Arizona Cardinals have a unique training camp advantage.

Head coach Mike LaFleur speaks to the media at the Cardinals Tempe facility on June 2, 2026, in Tempe, Ariz. | Megan Mendoza/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

ARIZONA — The Arizona Cardinals will have a head start on the rest of the league when it comes to training camp.

The NFL has released the list of start dates for all 32 teams, and alongside the Carolina Panthers, the Cardinals' July 22 reporting date is the earliest across the league.

List of training camp sites and rookie and veteran reporting dates: pic.twitter.com/mQpeIvYTU7

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 22, 2026

Teams are reporting as late as July 28, giving the Cardinals a several-day advantage in terms of acclimation and prep.

This is thanks in part to their coming participation in the NFL's Hall of Fame game on Aug. 6, which allows both the Cardinals and Panthers the opportunity to play in the league's extra preseason matchup while other teams will only get the standard three preseason games.

"They just need reps, and the more you can bank reps, the better. And that's what you love about these 10 practices, but that's what you really love about training camp, because now we get to take the training wheels off and put some pads on and play as close to football as we can without tackling," LaFleur told reporters near the end of minicamp.

Arizona, thanks to Mike LaFleur coming in for his first season as Cardinals head coach, also got to start offseason workout programs early as a result.

"I think that's great. I think having the first year head coach being in the Hall of Fame game, getting that extra week, like I think that is absolutely a net positive for us," LaFleur said.

"To be able to get the preparation, get those pads on a little bit earlier — our acclimation period, like I was just saying, guys are still going to be on vacation around this league, and rightfully so. I mean, that's the way the calendar falls. To able to get to that Hall of Fame game, and work that operation [will be huge]."

The Cardinals, coming off a three-win season, will need all the extra help they can get ahead of 2026 where the NFC West is again expected to be the best division in football.