When the Dallas Cowboys visit the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night, it will be their third prime-time game in three weeks. Dallas is one of five teams with three straight night games on the 2026 schedule, and two more of those runs are in progress this week: the Seattle Seahawks host the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night, and the Chicago Bears, who started theirs by beating the New England Patriots 30-24 on Thursday, visit Seattle on Monday night in Week 8.
Mike Florio drew attention to the pattern this week. He pointed out that five teams have such a stretch this season, wrote that the league has called it a random scheduling quirk, and suggested it could be a sign of things to come if the NFL ever adds regular Tuesday and Wednesday night games, which would mean stacking more night games for the same teams.
The five three-week runs
| Team | Weeks | Games | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Rams | 1–3 | 49ers in Melbourne (Thu), Giants (Mon), at Broncos (Sun) | 1-2: lost 27-7, won 28-6, lost 30-26 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 3–5 | at Packers (Thu), at Saints (Mon), Ravens (Sun) | 2-1: won 35-14, won 45-24, lost 30-23 in overtime |
| Dallas Cowboys | 5–7 | Buccaneers (Thu), at Packers (Sun), at Eagles (Mon) | 0-2 so far: lost 24-16, lost 23-13 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 6–8 | at Broncos (Thu), Chiefs (Sun), Bears (Mon) | 0-1 so far: lost 17-14 in overtime |
| Chicago Bears | 7–9 | Patriots (Thu), at Seahawks (Mon), Buccaneers (Sun) | 1-0 so far: won 30-24 |
Each run includes one Thursday, one Sunday and one Monday night game, in some order. The first two teams to finish one went a combined 3-3. By our count of the full 2025 schedule, last season’s only three-week night runs came at the very end, in Weeks 16 to 18, when Baltimore and San Francisco picked up Saturday and Week 18 night games. None came in the first half of the season.
How the rest lines up
Three straight night games do not mean three equal weeks. The gaps between games swing from short to long and back again:
- Cowboys: four days from their Week 4 win at Houston to the Thursday game against Tampa Bay, then 10 days to Green Bay, eight days to Philadelphia, and six days to host Arizona on Sunday, Nov. 1, at 1 pm ET (8 pm in Cairo).
- Seahawks: 10 days from their overtime loss in Denver to Sunday night against Kansas City, eight days to the Bears on Monday, Nov. 2, and six days to host Arizona on Sunday, Nov. 8, at 4:25 pm ET.
- Bears: 11 days from Thursday’s win to the Monday night trip to Seattle, then six days to host Tampa Bay on Sunday night, Nov. 8, before their Week 10 bye.
Cowboys at Eagles on Monday night
Dallas and Philadelphia are both 2-4 going into Monday’s game at Lincoln Financial Field, which kicks off at 8:15 pm ET on Oct. 26, or 3:15 am Tuesday in Cairo. The Cowboys have lost both games so far in their prime-time stretch. The Eagles have lost four straight, and Tanner McKee is starting with Jalen Hurts likely out for the season. Early betting lines make Dallas a 4.5-point favorite on the road.
Philadelphia listed 24 players on its first injury report of the week on Thursday. Saquon Barkley was limited in his first practice since hurting his hamstring in Week 4, while DeVonta Smith, Dallas Goedert and Nolan Smith did not practice; our Thursday injury roundup has the details. Because the game is on Monday, the Eagles and Cowboys will practice again on Friday and Saturday before their final game designations.
The Eagles also have a short turnaround of their own: six days after Monday’s game, they visit Washington on Sunday night, Nov. 1, a game the league chose not to flex out of the slot.
Where the other two runs go next
- Chiefs at Seahawks: Sunday, Oct. 25, at 8:20 pm ET on NBC at Lumen Field (3:20 am Monday in Cairo). Seattle is 3-3 and Kansas City is coming in with Josh Simmons on injured reserve.
- Bears at Seahawks: Monday, Nov. 2, at 8:15 pm ET at Lumen Field (3:15 am Tuesday in Cairo, after Egypt’s clocks go back at the end of October). It is the only game this season between two teams that both have one of these three-week runs.
- Buccaneers at Bears: Sunday, Nov. 8, at 8:20 pm ET on NBC at Soldier Field (3:20 am Monday in Cairo), the last game of the five runs.
Every night game for the rest of the season, with results and team totals, is on our prime-time schedule.
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