The 2026 NFL season opens Wednesday night with a Super Bowl LX rematch that puts Seattle and New England right back in the spotlight. The Seahawks beat the Patriots 29-13 in the title game, with Sam Darnold shedding the “draft-bust monkey” label, Mike Macdonald reinforcing his reputation as one of the league’s brightest young coaches, and Seattle claiming the second Lombardi Trophy in franchise history.
New England, though, also came out of last season looking like a real contender. Drake Maye delivered an MVP-caliber campaign, Mike Vrabel guided a 10-win turnaround, and the Patriots won the AFC East for the first time since 2019, the conference for the first time since ’18, and added to their NFL-record total of 12 Super Bowl appearances.
One of the biggest individual storylines belongs to Christian Gonzalez, who finalized a four-year, $135 million extension with the Patriots this week after a drawn-out contract battle. The deal makes him the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history by total value and average annual salary, at $33.75 million. With that situation settled, Gonzalez now turns back to the job he’s been pushing aside all summer, and that means a heavyweight matchup with Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
The expectation here is that Gonzalez spends most of the night lined up across from the reigning Offensive Player of the Year. He already handled that assignment once before, helping New England’s defense hold JSN to four catches for 27 yards on 10 targets in the Super Bowl, and the call here is that he keeps Smith-Njigba under 100 receiving yards again.
Seattle’s backfield also has a fresh look. Kenneth Walker III and the Super Bowl LX MVP are gone after signing a three-year, $43.05 million deal with the Chiefs, and the Seahawks responded by drafting Notre Dame’s Jadarian Price.
Price didn’t take a single preseason snap, which points to him opening the year as Seattle’s starter at running back. Zach Charbonnet is out at least the first four weeks after tearing his ACL in the playoffs, leaving Price with the clearest path to touches.
That setup gives Seattle a real chance to lean on the run right away. New England allowed Walker to go for 135 yards on 27 carries in the Super Bowl, a 5.0-yard average, and the Patriots also had trouble stopping the run during joint practices with the Colts and Eagles this preseason. Against that backdrop, Price looks positioned to make a quick impact, and the prediction is that he breaks off 100-plus rushing yards and scores a touchdown in his NFL debut.
There’s no question this is a tricky opener for New England. The Patriots’ top tier is strong, with Maye, Gonzalez, A.J. Brown and Milton Williams, but Vrabel has already acknowledged that the depth is still an issue after New England’s exhibition win over Philadelphia last month.
Seattle, meanwhile, gets to raise its second championship banner before a crowd that should make Lumen Field shake. With a roster that looks loaded from top to bottom, the Seahawks are picked to handle the moment, win 28-17, and avoid any hint of a Super Bowl hangover as they begin their title defense.
In Other News...
Seahawks Just Sent Their Strongest Signal Yet About Melbourne
The Seahawks are leaning harder into their push in Australia and New Zealand, announcing a strategic partnership with Collingwood that ties the NFL club to one of the biggest names in Australian football. It is part of Seattles marketing rights under the NFL Global Markets program, and it gives the team a more visible platform in a region where it has been looking to build real traction rather than just occasional awareness.
Melbourne will be the first major stage for that effort, with the two clubs set to co-host a kids AFL and NFL crossover flag football clinic. For Seattle, the move is less about a single event than about showing it is serious about planting roots abroad, using a local partner to connect with fans who may already know the sport through a different lens. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Secondary Suddenly Faces A Week 1 Problem
A thin-looking Seahawks secondary got thinner this week when Ty Okada was ruled out for the upcoming game because of a hamstring injury. Seattle also listed Nick Emmanwori as questionable, leaving the safety group in a shaky spot heading into a matchup where depth could matter quickly. Tory Horton is also questionable, but the bigger concern for Seattle is how it will patch together the back end if the injury picture does not improve before kickoff.
The roster math becomes even more important because the Seahawks may need to elevate safeties from the practice squad to cover the gaps. Across the field, New England has already ruled out running back TreVeyon Henderson and backup center Ben Brown, while defensive tackle Christian Barmore is expected to play, so both teams are still sorting out their Week 1 availability. For Seattle, the question now is not just who is healthy enough to suit up, but whether the secondary can survive the day if the list stays this short. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Open With A Rematch That Feels Different This Time
A season opener against New England already carries some extra weight for Seattle because it comes as a rematch of the previous years Super Bowl, and the game now has even more intrigue after the Patriots locked up Christian Gonzalez on a four-year, $135 million extension. The deal made him the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history and adds another layer to a matchup that figures to be watched closely in both cities, especially with the Seahawks and Patriots each trying to show how much they have changed since that championship meeting.
For Seattle, the bigger picture is not just the logo on the other sideline but the shifting cast around it. New Englands offensive line and receiving corps have both been upgraded, which gives the Patriots a better chance to stress a Seahawks defense that will have to answer some different problems this time around. However it plays out, it is the kind of opener that can tell a lot about where Seattle stands right away, and it sets up a meeting that feels less like a replay than a test of how far both teams have come. [Read more 🡒]