After a forgettable 5-12 season in 2025, the Cleveland Browns are poised for a potential turnaround in 2026 based on their strength of schedule. The NFL will unveil all 32 teams schedules for next season on Thursday night at 8 pm.
The NFL's annual schedule release is set for Thursday this week, and, in anticipation, fans are already trying to predict how many games their team will win in 2026.
For the Cleveland Browns, with a new head coach in Todd Monken and another highly touted draft class in toe, there are some notable reasons for optimism. More of that presented itself to begin the schedule unveiling week
A graphic shared by the league on social media listed all 32 teams in order by their strength of schedule and the Browns rounded out the list with what's considered the easier strength of schedule, thanks to a .429 win percentage by their 2026 opponents last season.
Joining the Browns near the bottom of the list, are the New Orleans Saints (.434), their division rival Cincinnati Bengals (.450), the Indianapolis Colts (.465) and the Atlanta Falcons (.465).
The hardest schedules based on 2025 win percentage include the Chicago Bears (.550), the Miami Dolphins (.542), the Arizona Cardinals (.538), the Green Bay Packers (.538) and the Kansas City Chiefs (.536).
As for the Browns other two division rivals, the Baltimore Ravens have one of the 10 easiest strength of schedules with their opponents boasting a .479 win percentage last season. Top rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers, are near the middle of the league, with a cumulative win percentage against of .495.
Cleveland is in line to face 10 teams that finished with 8 or fewer wins last season. Only four of their opponents next season were part of the playoff field in 2025: the Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars the Carolina Panthers and the Steelers.
Of course, it's always critical to take the strength-of-schedule calculation based on the previous year's win percentage with a grain of salt. Those percentages are calculated with zero context for the moves every team has made this offseason. Or, in the Browns' case, coaching changes have been made.
Teams that were near the bottom of the league, or even just missed the playoffs, may be in line for a turnaround this fall after an offseason filled with tweaks and changes.
The Browns could certainly be included in that category as well, with so many new pieces on offense set to make an immediate impact and Monken calling the shots.
Fans will learn the official order, dates and times of all 17 games for Cleveland on Thursday when all 32 teams unveil their schedules around 8 p.m. Eastern.
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