CBS Sports analysis identifies five NFL teams with favourable paths to 2026 postseason
A review of opponent strength derived from 2025 season results suggests these franchises face the least difficult routes to the playoffs, aided by divisional weaknesses and reduced travel burdens.
CBS Sports has published an analysis identifying five National Football League teams with the most favourable paths to the 2026 postseason. The assessment, based on opponent strength from the 2025 season, highlights the Detroit Lions, Baltimore Ravens, New Orleans Saints, Cincinnati Bengals, and Philadelphia Eagles as having advantageous schedules. The evaluation considers factors such as the winning percentages of opponents, divisional weaknesses, and travel logistics.
The Detroit Lions are positioned to benefit from opponents posting the sixth-worst winning percentage in 2025. The schedule includes two three-week stretches, spanning Weeks 3-5 and Weeks 13-15, against teams expected to have losing records. Detroit will play 10 contests against teams in the bottom half of power rankings, providing opportunities to build momentum at the beginning and end of the season.
The New Orleans Saints boast the NFL's second-easiest schedule based on 2025 win totals. The NFC South is described as wide-open, with other teams facing an average schedule strength of No. 20. While New Orleans faces tough early road games against the Lions and Ravens, it has only one true away game from Week 3 to Week 10, with a bye week following that period to mitigate travel effects.
Cincinnati Bengals have the third-cushiest schedule by opponents' 2025 win totals. Only one opponent, the Indianapolis Colts, finished last year in the top 10 of PFF's offensive rankings. The average ranking of all 17 opponents was 20.5, a factor that could assist a defence that added significant talent to the front line and secondary.
Philadelphia Eagles are identified as the class of the NFC East. The schedule features two home games against NFC West teams, the Rams and Seahawks, and a home game against the Texans. They will never play more than two consecutive games away from home, with stretches of three and four weeks without true road games.
Baltimore Ravens undergo a coaching change with Jesse Minter as first-year coach. All but one of their first seven opponents, the Dallas Cowboys, sit below them in power rankings. They will play just two games outside the Eastern Time Zone, ranking 21st in miles traveled, which minimises logistical burdens for the new regime.
The analysis notes that scheduling luck can influence outcomes, citing the New England Patriots' 2025 Super Bowl run despite holding the worst strength of schedule. However, the assessment relies on 2025 data and does not account for potential improvements, regressions, or roster changes resulting from offseason moves.
