Everything to Know About the NFL’s 23 Joint Practices in 2026

Here are the dates, locations and key storylines to watch for each session, which will involve 28 teams throughout training camp.

The Saints and Rams will meet for joint practices for a second straight preseason. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Joint practices have become all the rage across the NFL in recent years, with teams opting to ramp up training camp competition against one another in a controlled practice environment instead of on the preseason game field. While these team–versus–team practices sessions aren’t necessarily a new phenomenon, the frequency with which they’re scheduled has steadily increased since the league went from 16 regular-season games to 17 in 2021, which reduced the preseason slate from four games to three, and in turn gave clubs less on-field time to prepare for the regular season.

Unlike preseason games—which feature game clocks, referees and carte blanche to do just about anything within the rules of football, including hitting the quarterback—joint practices are managed by the coaches of both teams. This allows them to control the tempo of the session, the drills that they run and the matchups they’d like to see against their opponent—simulating game-like scenarios while limiting injuries in the process.

RELATED: NFL Announces Training Camp Report Dates for All 32 Teams

Throughout the 2026 preseason, 28 teams will conduct at least one joint practice, with only the Broncos, Chiefs, Lions and Steelers opting out. Of those 28 clubs, 15 will participate in multiple joint sessions, while three—the Jaguars, Saints and Titans—will take part in three. 

Here’s a look at the NFL’s entire 23-session joint practice schedule coming up this summer.

Cowboys vs. Rams

George Pickens will be one to watch at Cowboys practice this summer. | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 11
Location: Los Angeles

The Rams will host the Cowboys at Loyola Marymount University for a joint practice this summer, giving us a look at two of the league’s best wide receiver duos on the same field. Los Angeles will then travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs for their first preseason game on Aug. 15, while Dallas will head to Seattle to take on the Seahawks.

Colts vs. Patriots

Mike Vrabel and the Patriots are coming off an appearance in Super Bowl LX. | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 11
Location: Foxborough, Mass.

The Patriots will host the Colts at their brand-new New Balance Athletics Center in Foxborough, Mass., for the first of each club’s two joint practices this training camp. The session comes two days before they’ll meet in their preseason opener at Gillette Stadium on Thursday, Aug. 13.

Buccaneers vs. Jets

Todd Bowles and the Buccaneers are headed to New Jersey this summer. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 11
Location: Florham Park, N.J.

It’ll be the Todd Bowles Bowl in Florham Park this August, as the Jets will welcome back their former coach (and his Buccaneers squad) for a joint practice session ahead of their Week 1 preseason matchup. Stories to watch include Aaron Glenn’s second season in New York, Baker Mayfield’s contract situation and a Mike Evans–less Tampa Bay wide receiver room. 

Titans vs. 49ers

Robert Saleh and Kyle Shanahan have worked together twice with the 49ers. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 11
Location: Santa Clara, Calif.

Kyle Shanahan will reunite with his longtime defensive coordinator, Robert Saleh, this summer as the 49ers will host the Titans for a joint practice in Santa Clara. The session comes two days prior to the clubs facing off in their preseason opener from Levi’s Stadium.

Dolphins vs. Commanders

Jeff Hafley is headed into his first season as Dolphins head coach. | Isabella Frias-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 12
Location: Ashburn, Va.

The Dolphins are headed to Commanders Park on Aug. 12 for a joint practice session with Washington. The two teams will then face off from Landover, Md.’s Northwest Stadium in Miami coach Jeff Hafley’s (preseason) coaching debut. 

Jaguars vs. Saints

Jaguars wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter is headed into his second NFL season. | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Start date: Thursday, Aug. 13
Location: Metairie, La.

The Saints and Jaguars will compete in a joint practice (the first of each team’s three this summer) from New Orleans’s Ochsner Sports Performance Center on Aug. 13. The two clubs—led by second-year coaches Liam Coen and Kellen Moore—will then square off in preseason game No. 1 at the Caesars Superdome.

49ers vs. Chargers

The Chargers will host the 49ers at The Bolt this summer. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 18
Location: El Segundo, Calif.

West Coast, best coast. Ahead of their Week 2 preseason matchup at Los Angeles’s SoFi Stadium, the Chargers will host the 49ers for a joint session at The Bolt—their El Segundo practice facility. The clubs are also slated to meet again in Week 15 of the 2026 regular season, also at SoFi.

Raiders vs. Texans

The Raiders drafted Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 18
Location: Houston

The Texans will host the Raiders for a joint practice at the Houston Methodist Training Center on Tuesday, Aug. 18. The session will give fans a peek at No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza taking on another NFL defense for the first time, and a preview of the two clubs before their preseason contest from Reliant Stadium just two days later.

Saints vs. Cowboys

The Saints are headed into Year 2 of the Tyler Shough era. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 18
Location: Oxnard, Calif.

The Saints and Cowboys will meet for each team’s second joint practices of the summer in Oxnard, Calif.—Dallas’s 2026 training camp home. Oddly enough, New Orleans will then stay in the Los Angeles area to face the Rams on Aug. 22, while the Cowboys will head to Arizona to take on the Cardinals the same day. Then, six days later, they’ll reunite in Arlington, Texas for exhibition game No. 3 from AT&T Stadium, putting a bow on their preseasons.

Falcons vs. Colts

Tagovailoa and Penix Jr. are battling for the Falcons' starting quarterback job. | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 19
Location: Westfield, Ind.

A week after practicing with the Patriots in Foxborough, the Colts will return to Indianapolis and host the Falcons for a joint session the following Wednesday. The two will then play a preseason game on Saturday, giving us a look at Atlanta’s starting quarterback competition between Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr.

Ravens vs. Vikings

Jesse Minter is heading into his first season as Ravens head coach. | Lexi Thompson-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 19
Location: Eagan, Minn.

The Ravens will travel north for the first of two joint practices this summer, with this one coming against the Vikings in Minnesota. Baltimore enters 2026 with a new head coach in Jesse Minter leading the charge, while the Vikings have a pretty public quarterback battle on their hands that Kevin O’Connell won’t put a timeline on.

Panthers vs. Jaguars

Bryce Young and the Panthers will practice against the Jaguars this summer. | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 19
Location: Jacksonville

Two surprise division winners from a season ago, the Panthers and Jaguars, will face off in a joint practice at Jacksonville’s Miller Electric Center. The session will give us a chance to see 2025 first-round wide receivers Tet McMillan and Travis Hunter on the field at the same time—and a look at whether the latter will continue to play both sides of the football in ’26.

Eagles vs. Patriots

A.J. Brown was traded to the Patriots on June 1. | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 19
Location: Foxborough, Mass.

Get your popcorn ready for this one. Just over two months after trading wide receiver A.J. Brown to the Patriots, the Eagles are headed to Foxborough for a joint practice session in New England. Then, three days later, the two sides will compete in preseason game No. 2 from Gillette Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 22.

Bills vs. Browns

Josh Allen and the Bills are heading into their first season under head coach Joe Brady. | Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Start date: Thursday, Aug. 20
Location: Berea, Ohio

The Bills are headed to Cleveland this summer to work with the Browns in Berea ahead of their preseason game on Aug. 22. The practice between the two teams will give the Browns’ quarterbacks—in a battle for the starting role—a chance to compete against a live NFL defense, while also putting Buffalo’s new head coach Joe Brady on full display. 

Bears vs. Bengals

Dexter Lawrence II was traded to the Bengals this offseason. | Frank Bowen IV/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Start date: Thursday, Aug. 20
Location: Cincinnati

In what may be the first look at Madden cover athlete Caleb Williams against another opponent in 2026, the Bears will travel to Cincinnati to practice against the Bengals ahead of their Week 2 preseason matchup. Alongside their star signal-callers (Williams and Joe Burrow), Chicago and Cincinnati have both done their part to make roster upgrades ahead of 2026 as they look to climb the ladder in their respective conferences.

Saints vs. Rams

The Saints and Rams will practice together for a second consecutive training camp. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Start date: Thursday, Aug. 20
Location: Los Angeles

The Saints’ third joint practice of 2026 will be the Rams’ second, as New Orleans heads to Los Angeles to work with the top dogs in the NFC just two days after their session with the Cowboys in Oxnard. Needless to say, Kellen Moore’s Saints team is getting its money’s worth this preseason as they look to improve on quarterback Tyler Shough’s impressive rookie season.

Giants vs. Dolphins

Jaxson Dart is headed into his second season as the Giants' quarterback. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Start date: Thursday, Aug. 20
Location: Miami Gardens, Fla.

John Harbaugh’s Giants weren’t going through their first preseason together without a joint practice, as the G-Men will head south to Miami to work with the Dolphins ahead of their Week 2 preseason battle at Hard Rock Stadium. New York’s second-year pros Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo will be the stars of this proverbial show in South Beach and Harbaugh will get a look at a Dolphins squad many people thought might hire him after they fired Mike McDaniel.

Seahawks vs. Titans

The Seahawks are defending Super Bowl champions. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Start date: Friday, Aug. 21
Location: Nashville

Joint practice No. 2 for the Titans will take place in Nashville, with quarterback Cam Ward & Co. welcoming the Seahawks to town for a mid-camp run-in with one of the NFC’s best. Seattle—coming off its second Super Bowl title in franchise history—will be looking to smooth out its revamped depth chart, while Tennessee does the same to kick off Saleh’s first year in charge.

Buccaneers vs. Jaguars

Baker Mayfield is waiting on a new contract. | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Start date: Tuesday, Aug. 25
Location: Jacksonville

The Buccaneers won’t have to travel far for their second joint practice of the summer, as they’ll take the quick trip from Tampa to Jacksonville to work with the Jaguars. The two Florida clubs will then face off in their preseason finale at EverBank Stadium.

Cardinals vs. Packers

The LeFleur brothers will coach together this preseason. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 26
Location: Green Bay

LeFleur siblings, unite! To round out his first training camp as Cardinals head coach, Mike LeFleur will bring his team north to Green Bay for a joint practice with his older brother Matt’s Packers. The two squads will then conclude their preseason with a final tune-up at Lambeau Field on Friday, Aug. 28.

Texans vs. Panthers

C.J. Stroud and the Texans were eliminated by the Patriots last postseason. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 26
Location: Charlotte

The first two picks in the 2023 NFL draft, quarterbacks Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud, will be on the same field together later this summer when the Panthers host the Texans for a joint practice in Charlotte. The Panthers will then play in their fourth preseason game of the summer (due to their scheduled appearance in the Hall of Fame Game) against Houston before calling it a camp and turning the page to the regular season. Both quarterbacks have had their fifth-year options picked up, but we’ll see if either has a long-term extension by then.

Commanders vs. Ravens

Jayden Daniels is heading into his third NFL season. | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Start date: Wednesday, Aug. 26
Location: Owings Mills, Md. 

The Ravens will host the Commanders from Owings Mills’s Under Armour Performance Center on Wednesday, Aug. 26, putting two of the NFL’s top dual-threat quarterbacks together on the same field in Jayden Daniels and Lamar Jackson. Baltimore will then host Washington at M&T Bank Stadium for each team’s preseason finale.

Bears vs. Titans

Caleb Williams is on the cover of Madden 27. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Start date: Thursday, Aug. 27
Location: Nashville

In the final joint practice of the NFL’s 2026 training camp calendar, the Titans will welcome the Bears to Nashville in late August. The two clubs will then square off two days later, on Aug. 29, at Nissan Stadium to close out the preseason. 

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