We have known for months now that the Atlanta Falcons are headed to Madrid for an overseas game during the 2026 seasons. The only question that remained unanswered was about who the Falcons would be playing, but Atlanta's opponent was leaked-- and it's a familiar foe for Kevin Stefanski.
Cincinnati newscaster Mike Dardis was the first to leak that the Cincinnati Bengals would be the Falcons' opponent in Spain, and this leak was later confirmed by Adam Schefter. Now that the league has made this matchup official, you better set your alarm clocks a little earlier in mid-November.
The Falcons and Bengals are set to square off in Week 9, and kickoff will be at 9:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 8. This is also the first leak or glimpse of what Atlanta's 2026 schedule will look like ahead of Thursday's 2026 schedule release, so this game will offer a homecoming of sorts for Stefanski.
The Falcons will host the Cincinnati Bengals in Madrid during the 2026 NFL season
Of all the matchups the Dirty Birds could have had in Madrid, Cincinnati is one of the more favorable. After spending six seasons as the head coach of the Cleveland Browns, Stefanski has had more than his fair share of matchups with the Bengals, and history has shown he fares pretty well against them.
In 12 matchups with the Bengals from 2020 to 2025, Cleveland went 7-5 against the Bengals and the two-time Coach of the Year swept his then-AFC North rivals in both 2020 and 2021. However, in the four years since, Cincinnati has won five of the last eight against Stefanski and his Browns teams.
In the two seasons in which he had competent QB play (2020 and 2021), he never lost to the Bengals, which includes a 41-16 rout in 2021. And in three of those games, Stefanski's offense cleared 30 points, so maybe he can expose an awful Bengals' defense with Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa.
He definitely owes Baker Mayfield a nice steak dinner, but either way, that counts. The Falcons' offense has far more offensive talent than any of those Browns teams did, so if Jeff Ulbrich and the defense can do what those 2025 Browns' defenses did to Bengals' offense, this game will end in a W.
Speaking of, let's take a look at the most recent chapters of this division rivalry. The Browns lost 17-16 in Week 1 of 2025 on a walk-off field goal but they won 20-18 on a walk-off field goal in Week 18. His defenses kept Joe Burrow and the Bengals' offense in check twice, and they could've swept the season series last season, so hopefully Stefanski's success against them will translate to Atlanta.
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