Dolphins 2026 Schedule Takeaways

The Miami Dolphins' 2026 regular season schedule became official Thursday night, and what stood out was the start with two road games and the lack of prime-time action.

Here are our quick takeaways:

Hitting the Road Early

This one was leaked pretty early, the Dolphins opening their regular season schedule with road games against the Las Vegas Raiders and the San Francisco 49ers. It's not exactly way to ease into a season with a first-year head coach, with a repeat of what happened in 2016 when Adam Gase began his Dolphins coaching tenure with back-to-back road games. Don't be surprised if the Dolphins stay out West between games — it's probably not a coincidence that those two road games were coupled; it probably came at the request of the Dolphins.

Not Ready for Prime Time

That the Dolphins didn't get a single assigned night game cannot be considered surprising after the offseason teardown of the roster and the low expectations for the team in the first year of a rebuilding project. There's always the possibility of a game being flexed to a prime-time game, but as it stands now the Dolphins are looking at a chance of not having a single night game for the first time since 2008 — when they were coming off their 1-15 season and shocked the NFL by going 11-5 and winning the AFC East title.

The Repeat Season Ender

The Dolphins are going to be ending their season at New England for a second consecutive year, which actually is pretty rare. The last time the Dolphins closed the season against the same opponent back to back was in 2017 and 2018 against Buffalo, though those were split as far as the home team. The last time they had consecutive finales against the same opponent in the same locale was in 2015 and 2016 with the Patriots twice coming to Miami.

Weather watch

We indicated in our schedule wish list a preference for a few cold-weather games to see Jeff Hafley's philosophy in action quickly — remember, fast gets slower, but big doesn't get smaller. Well, the Dolphins got three potential cold-weather games, including Hafley's return to Lambeau Field in Week 15. The Dolphins might not have quite the talent to win those three games against 2025 playoff teams Denver, Green Bay and New England, but it'll be interesting to see how they fare and how their new approach can help.

Brutal Closing Stretch

It's pretty eye-popping to look at the Dolphins' final six games and see six playoff teams from last year, though we have to remember that things often change from year to year, so there's no guarantee the Broncos, Bears, Packers, Chargers, Bills and Patriots will be just as good in 2026 as they were in 2025. It's also important to note that the Dolphins logically won't be contenders next season and the goal will be more about moving in the right direction, so maybe it's a good thing the tough season-ending stretch can provide a good final test for 2026.

THE MIAMI DOLPHINS' 2026 SCHEDULE

All Times Eastern

*-Subject to flex scheduling

Week 1 — at Las Vegas, Sunday, Sept. 13, 4:25 p.m.

Week 2 — at San Francisco, Sunday, Sept. 20, 4:25 p.m. ET

Week 3 — KANSAS CITY, Sunday, Sept. 27, 1 p.m.

Week 4 — at Minnesota, Sunday, Oct. 4, 4:05 p.m.

Week 5 — CINCINNATI, Sunday, Oct. 11, 1 p.m.*

Week 6 — Bye week

Week 7 — at N.Y. Jets, Sunday, Oct. 25, 1 p.m.*

Week 8 — NEW ENGLAND, Sunday, Nov. 1, 4:25 p.m.*

Week 9 — DETROIT, Sunday, Nov. 8, 1 p.m.*

Week 10 — at Indianapolis, Sunday, Nov. 15, 1 p.m.*

Week 11 — at Buffalo, Sunday, Nov. 22, 1 p.m.

Week 12 — N.Y. JETS, Sunday, Nov. 29, 1 p.m.

Week 13 — at Denver, Sunday, Dec. 6, 4:05 p.m.*

Week 14 — CHICAGO, Sunday, Dec. 13, 1 p.m.*

Week 15 — at Green Bay, Sunday, Dec. 20, 1 p.m.*

Week 16 — L.A. CHARGERS, Sunday, Dec. 27, 1 p.m.*

Week 17 — BUFFALO, Sunday, Jan. 3, 1 p.m.*

Week 18 — at New England, Sunday, Jan. 9 or 10, TBD

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