The Seahawks have a rather tough schedule, but there is a stretch where Mike Macdonald's team can flex its muscles.
The Seattle Seahawks know the path to another Super Bowl has been set after the NFL released the schedule for the 2026 season.
As defending champs, naturally, the Seahawks were going to get a tough schedule, plus being in the NFC West, which houses the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams, it makes it even tougher to simply get into the playoffs.
But Mike Macdonald's team, which starts with the New England Patriots and ends with playing the Rams twice in the final three weeks, has a lot of work to do if it is to maintain the high regular-season standards of last year.
Of course, this is all a projection, as we don't truly have an idea of what the "top" teams on Seattle's schedule are in terms of upper-echelon teams until we see them play.
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But for all of the tough stretches in the Seahawks' schedule, CBS Sports' John Breech has found a spot in the games where the NFC West champs can lay a great foundation before the nightmarish second half of the season begins.
"On paper, the Seahawks schedule doesn't have very many soft spots, but the teams probably love what they see starting in Week 9," Breech wrote. "From Nov. 3 thru Nov. 28, here's what the Seahawks schedule looks like: Cardinals (Week 9), at Raiders (Week 10), BYE (Week 11).
"The defending Super Bowl champs will be favored huge in those games and if they win both of them, it will give them some serious momentum as they head into the back half of their schedule."
Granted, it is only two games, but they are two that the Seahawks simply have to be winning, because what lies in store for them after the bye is tough.
The Seahawks will face the 49ers on the road, the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants at home, before going on the road to face the Philadelphia Eagles, then a home clash against the Rams.
That is a five-game stretch that you could make the case that is make-or-break for Seattle's season.
Especially considering that the 49ers and Rams clashes could have division implications and could also see the Seahawks either make the playoffs or miss them altogether.
So, when the Seahawks have games early in the year that they "should' be winning, they've got to because if they get to the stretch of games starting in Week 12 at or near .500 that could be trouble.
