Why the Rams and 49ers might have the NFL’s most exhausting season

The NFL is quickly becoming a global empire and the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams are about to feel every brutal mile of it. 

The NFL’s 2026 schedule was officially released last Thursday night and the league shattered the previous travel record. 

All 32 NFL teams will collectively cover 628,873 miles this season thanks largely to nine international games spread across the globe. To put that into perspective, that’s the equivalent of more than 25 trips around the Earth’s circumference.

It all starts with the 2026 season opener when the Rams and 49ers travel to the legendary Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia. 

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The round-trip trek to Melbourne clocks in at a staggering 15,742 miles, helping push the 49ers to a new NFL record 38,105 miles traveled, with the Rams right behind them at 34,847 total miles traveled. Both teams will also cross 54 time zones over the course of the year. 

Both teams also have tough schedules this season as well. Based on opponents winning percentage last season, the Rams have the 13th toughest schedule and the 49ers have the 18th. But that ranking doesn’t account for the physical and mental drain of travel. Both teams should be ranked No. 1 and No. 2 because of jet lag alone.

Meanwhile, the Carolina Panthers will travel just 8,740 miles this season, four times less than the Rams and 49ers. Carolina will never venture further west than Minneapolis in 2026. 

That gap between the Rams/49ers and the Panthers seems almost absurd. One franchise got a regional bus route. The other two will go around the world in 80 days. 

Bill Speros of Bookies.com recently calculated all the miles traveled for all 32 NFL teams and the result is in the graphic below.

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