Arizona Cardinals ranked as having toughest schedule in 2026

[Mickey the Mouth]

The Arizona Cardinals have a tough schedule in 2026. In terms of strength of schedule, the winning percentage of their opponents last season, their schedule is the third-toughest in the league.

However, even with the third-toughest strength of schedule, NFL.com's Dan Parr ranks the Cardinals' schedule as the toughest in the league in 2026.

There is nothing the schedule-makers could have done to keep Arizona from appearing on this list, although they didn't do the Cardinals any favors by sending them on the road for six of their first nine games. The Cards’ fate was sealed by their mandated double dips with division foes. They will play seven games against teams that logged at least one playoff win last season, and six of those contests come against NFC West opponents. The 49ers, Rams and Seahawks haven’t done anything this offseason to project a major step back in 2026. The division is not built to give rebuilding teams a soft landing right now. There are tough tilts against the Broncos, Eagles, Chiefs and Chargers awaiting new head coach Mike LaFleur, too, with the latter two matchups on the road. LaFleur is charged with pointing the ship in the right direction in Year 1, and even if he makes progress on that front, the standings could be a harsh reminder of how far the franchise still must go.

They happen to be the whipping boys for the tough NFC West. Everyone else in the division is great. As Parr notes, nearly half their schedule is against teams who won a playoff game.

Now, the funny part of the talk of a tough schedule is that it won't impact their shot at the postseason. It would be one thing if they were a team expected to compete. Such a tough schedule would seem like a bummer, or it might forge a strong, competitive team leading to the playoffs.

This Cardinals team is nowhere near that. They have the best odds of winning the fewest games in the league. The tough schedule doesn't help, but they are underdogs in every single game on the schedule, even at home against the lowly New York Jets.

It is hard to say whether this is the best use of an extremely tough schedule or if it is an actual waste.

It isn't as if the Cardinals would be projected to win many games with an easy schedule. That's hard to do when viewed as the worst team in the league.

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This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: Arizona Cardinals ranked as having toughest schedule in 2026

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