Cardinals face a brutal challenge no other team has to overcome

The Arizona Cardinals are coming off a 3-14 record in what was an absolutely brutal year. How do they get rewarded? Okay, well maybe the No. 3 overall pick that turned into Jeremiyah Love.

But that three-win season also somehow resulted in the most difficult strength of schedule in 2026, according to Warren Sharp's methodology, which bases it off what Vegas sets for each team's projected win totals.

And it's not particularly close.

Part of that can be attributed to the fact that the Cardinals (unfortunately) can't play themselves, but then again, look at the New York Jets and Cleveland Browns in the top ten!

It's one of the many downsides of the Cardinals being stuck in an NFC West division that's arguably the best in football, having to play the likes of the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, and Los Angeles Rams each twice a year.

Cardinals won't have to try to get a top pick in 2027

However, it's not necessarily bad timing for a Cardinals team that has no realistic playoff expectations, and therefore, should already be looking ahead to the 2027 NFL Draft. They reworked Jacoby Brissett's deal but strategically didn't add any more years to it, as they hope to find their long-term answer at the position in that 2027 class.

The demanding schedule could ultimately be a blessing in disguise with how many signal callers are projected to be at the top of the class. A way-too-early mock draft released by FanSided's Cody Williams last month has Arch Manning (Texas), Dante Moore (Oregon), and Darian Mensah (Miami) all projected to land inside the top five, with Manning going No. 1 overall to the Cardinals.

Hopefully that stays the course in what could be a very long but very rewarding season in The Valley.

Given how frontloaded the Cardinals' schedule is in terms of difficulty, they could be directly fighting for draft position in their matchups at the end of the year. Arizona's easiest games also happen to be their final three against the New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, and Las Vegas Raiders.

In all likelihood, all four of those teams (including the Cardinals) will be eliminated from playoff contention at that point. It could turn into that South Park episode "The Losing Edge" where neither team wants to win their single-elimination baseball tournament because they are sick of playing.

Not to say the Cardinals players won't want to win at that point, but their front office should have the bigger picture in mind. That was already the case heading into the season as they continue the rebuild, and the brutal division, paired with the impossible schedule, makes that goal all the more clear.

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