Former Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce believes the NFL is walking a fine line with the number of non-Sunday games it has scheduled in recent years.
The league will have 197 Sunday afternoon games next season, down from 198 in 2025 and 211 in 2021, according to Awful Announcing's Manny Soloway.
"One of the reasons (the NFL) got so popular and big was because ... it was an event," Kelce said on the "New Heights Podcast." "Sunday is the NFL, and everybody set their week apart to tune in to their games that were happening on Sunday.
He added: "With every day that we keep adding in there, we're getting away from that just a little bit."
The NFL will open the 2026 season on a Wednesday instead of Thursday. The defending champion Seattle Seahawks are scheduled to face the New England Patriots in a rematch of Super Bowl LX on Sept. 9, while the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams will play in Australia the following day.
This year, the NFL has also added games on Thanksgiving Eve and Christmas Eve. The upcoming season will have 23 standalone windows outside of Thursday and Monday Night Football, up from 15 last campaign, according to Soloway.
"I think it's awesome," Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce said of the league's current schedule. "I honestly do. As somebody who's played on Christmas, who's played on Christmas Eve, who's played on Thanksgiving Eve, Thanksgiving, who's played in a lot of awkward short-week moments, I think it's fun.
"And I don't think it's as taxing as it may seem, because it's the NFL. You're living out your dream. ... If there's a chance to play on a f-----g prime-time game, which all these one-off games are that aren't on Sunday, I'm f-----g getting so excited for those opportunities, because those are the opportunities you really get to show yourself."
NFL owners voted last week to expand the international slate from eight games to 10 for the 2027 season. As part of the vote, teams can no longer prevent specific home games from being played internationally.
