While the Las Vegas Raiders fans can look with some optimism at the 2026 offseason, knowing that their team might pick up talent with the No. 1 pick in the 2026 Draft, it remains the case that major improvements will be needed across the board to get the “project” to where it needs to be.
Of course, one of the first orders of business will be getting a team together that can improve on the 4-13 and 3-14 records posted in the past two seasons. Most fans aren’t considering a New England Patriots-level turnaround just yet, but stranger things have happened. The Pats started at +8000 in the Super Bowl LX odds before turning things around to make the championship game. It happens in sports.
Raiders have a tough (on paper) SoS in 2026
Yet, it’s intriguing to note the Raiders’ Strength of Schedule (SoS) in 2026, which is among the toughest in the league at 0.529. It’s actually down from last season (0.538), but it doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy. A quick look at the Raiders’ games:
*Note that dates are TBA.
2026 Home Opponents: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Tennessee Titans
2026 Away Opponents: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, San Francisco 49ers
Seven opponents made the playoffs…
The list contains seven teams that have made it to this season’s playoffs, including both Super Bowl teams, so that adds to the perception of toughness. Yet, some argue that SoS is a poor metric, with 2025 a particular example of why looking at a previous season as a measure of toughness can be misleading.
To explain, consider again the Patriots, who were 4-13 in 2024, thus tagged as an effortless team in statistical terms for SoS in 2025. Then consider others, like the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, and San Francisco 49ers, and then compare them to the “droppers” like the Kansas City Chiefs, Washington Commanders, Minnesota Vikings, and Detroit Lions. The latter teams raised opponents’ SoS but performed somewhat worse than expected.
The metric can be considered flawed
The point, as such, is that the metric is usually flawed because in any given season, new teams will emerge to improve their records by virtue of being better, and teams that have done well in the previous season will decline. Thus, the measure of toughness is up for debate.
As for the Raiders, well, it’s a matter of looking after their own house before worrying about opponents. The team’s hierarchy has ambitions and has asked for patience while pursuing them. Yet, at the very least, fans will expect some improvement on the performances of last season and higher numbers in the “W” column, regardless of who the opponent is.
*Top Photo: Naomi Baker/Getty Images