The Chicago Bears have the NFL's toughest strength of schedule for the 2026 season, facing opponents with a combined 2025 winning percentage of .550, the highest in the league [1, 2, 3]. The Miami Dolphins rank second hardest with a .542 opponent winning percentage, followed by the Green Bay Packers tied with the Arizona Cardinals at third with a .538 strength of schedule [2, 3].
The NFL released the official 2026 regular season schedule on the evening of May 14, 2026, detailing game dates and times for all teams [4, 2, 5]. The Packers’ schedule runs from September 13, 2026 through early January 2027 [5, 3]. They open on the road against the Minnesota Vikings on September 13, then travel to face the New York Jets the following week [5].
Green Bay will play the Chicago Bears twice in 2026: hosting them on October 11 and visiting Chicago on Christmas Day, December 25 [5, 3]. The Packers have six primetime games, including Thursday Night Football home matchups against Atlanta and Carolina, Sunday Night games versus Dallas and Buffalo, Monday Night Football against Houston, and a Thanksgiving Eve contest at the Los Angeles Rams, which will be the first NFL Thanksgiving Eve game broadcast on Netflix [5, 3].
Green Bay’s early schedule is road-heavy, with three of their first four games played on the road. Key players like linebacker Micah Parsons are expected to miss these early contests [3]. The team will face several top quarterbacks in 2026 including reigning MVP Matthew Stafford, 2024 MVP Josh Allen, 2025 MVP runner-up Drake Maye, and division rivals Caleb Williams, Jared Goff, and Kyler Murray [2, 3].
The San Francisco 49ers will travel the most miles of any NFL team in 2026, logging over 38,100 miles, breaking previous records [6]. Conversely, the Carolina Panthers travel the fewest miles with only 8,740 scheduled, about 4.4 times fewer than the 49ers [6].
Since the NFL expanded to a 17-game schedule in 2021, playing a first-place schedule requires facing five division leaders from the previous season, making schedules inherently tougher for division winners [1]. Teams with the hardest schedules typically see an average drop of four wins the following season, as shown by the Detroit Lions’ decline from 15-2 in 2024 to 9-8 in 2025 [1].
Green Bay’s final regular season game is scheduled at home against the Detroit Lions on January 9, 2027, with date and time still to be confirmed [5].
