{"id":648189,"date":"2026-05-04T23:36:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T23:36:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/648189\/"},"modified":"2026-05-04T23:36:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T23:36:08","slug":"detroit-lions-projected-to-have-easiest-2026-nfl-schedule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/648189\/","title":{"rendered":"Detroit Lions projected to have easiest 2026 NFL schedule"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/sportsdata.usatoday.com\/football\/nfl\/teams\/detroit-lions\/334\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Detroit Lions;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Detroit Lions&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Detroit Lions<\/a> fans are hopeful that Dan Campbell, Jared Goff and Co. can author a bounce back 2026 campaign.<\/p>\n<p>After <a href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/articles\/anonymous-execs-detroit-lions-2026-213515114.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:addressing some of its key needs;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;addressing some of its key needs&quot;}\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">addressing some of its key needs<\/a> in the <a href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/articles\/detroit-lions-complete-2026-nfl-215021943.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:2026 NFL Draft;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;2026 NFL Draft&quot;}\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">2026 NFL Draft<\/a>, the <a href=\"https:\/\/lionswire.usatoday.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Lions;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Lions&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Lions<\/a> enter offseason workouts with their sights set upon reentering the championship conversation.<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p>After back-to-back NFC North crowns in 2023 and 2024, Detroit slumped to a 9-8 record and last-place finish in the division in 2025. But, that did bring one positive for 2026: The <a href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/articles\/lions-2026-nfl-schedule-opponents-205100416.html\" data-ylk=\"slk:Lions are facing a fourth-place schedule;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;outcm:mb_qualified_link;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Lions are facing a fourth-place schedule&quot;}\" class=\"link  yahoo-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Lions are facing a fourth-place schedule<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And, after crunching some numbers, Warren Sharp says it&#8217;s even better than that. Using Vegas oddsmakers&#8217; forecasted win totals, Sharp reports that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sharpfootballanalysis.com\/analysis\/nfl-strength-of-schedule\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Lions have the easiest NFL schedule next season;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Lions have the easiest NFL schedule next season&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Lions have the easiest NFL schedule next season<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Sharp&#8217;s strength of schedule rankings were ranked from easiest (No. 1) to hardest (No. 32). The rest of the NFC North&#8217;s strength of schedule rankings shake out like this according to Warren Sharp:<\/p>\n<p>Advertisement<\/p>\n<p>Sharp notes that strength of schedule rankings are not based on teams&#8217; records from the previous season. Sharp argues that predicted win totals incorporate current information about team strength, including offseason acquisitions, injuries, and coaching changes and therefore are a better indicator of future performance.<\/p>\n<p>The Lions&#8217; Vegas win total is set at 10.5. The <a href=\"https:\/\/sportsdata.usatoday.com\/football\/nfl\/teams\/green-bay-packers\/335\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Packers;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Packers&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Packers<\/a>&#8216; win total is also 10.5, the <a href=\"https:\/\/sportsdata.usatoday.com\/football\/nfl\/teams\/chicago-bears\/326\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Bears;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Bears&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Bears<\/a>&#8216; win total is 9.5 and the <a href=\"https:\/\/sportsdata.usatoday.com\/football\/nfl\/teams\/minnesota-vikings\/347\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Vikings;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Vikings&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Vikings<\/a>&#8216; win total is 8.5.<\/p>\n<p>For more\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/sportsdata.usatoday.com\/football\/nfl\/teams\/detroit-lions\/334\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Lions;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Lions&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Lions<\/a>\u00a0coverage, follow us on X,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/thelionswire\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:@TheLionsWire;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;@TheLionsWire&quot;}\" class=\"link \">@TheLionsWire<\/a>, and give our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/lionswire\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Facebook;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Facebook&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Facebook<\/a>\u00a0page a like.\u00a0Follow Josh on X,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JoshOnLions\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:@JoshOnLions;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;@JoshOnLions&quot;}\" class=\"link \">@JoshOnLions<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: <a href=\"https:\/\/lionswire.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/nfl\/lions\/2026\/05\/04\/detroit-lions-projected-easiest-2026-nfl-schedule\/89936061007\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Detroit Lions projected to have easiest 2026 NFL schedule;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;Detroit Lions projected to have easiest 2026 NFL schedule&quot;}\" class=\"link \">Detroit Lions projected to have easiest 2026 NFL schedule<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Detroit Lions fans are hopeful that Dan Campbell, Jared Goff and Co. can author a bounce back 2026&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":648190,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[436],"tags":[515,4851,11442,49,48,1735,81096,3163,1730,13267,1726,514,241025,8821,13279,13274,82,188918,13146],"class_list":["post-648189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-2026-nfl-draft","tag-bengals","tag-browns","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-chicago-bears","tag-dan-campbell","tag-detroit-lions","tag-green-bay-packers","tag-jets","tag-minnesota-vikings","tag-nfl","tag-offseason-workouts","tag-panthers","tag-rams","tag-saints","tag-sports","tag-strength-of-schedule","tag-warren-sharp"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/648189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=648189"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/648189\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/648190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=648189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=648189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=648189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}