The NFL offseason is officially in full swing. With free agency, the draft, and rookie minicamp behind us, all eyes now turn to the big reveal: the 2026 schedule, dropping Thursday night. For Washington Commanders fans, the burning question is just how tough their path to the playoffs will be compared to their NFC East rivals.

We already know *who* the Commanders will face next season—the Cowboys, Eagles, Giants, Rams, Seahawks, Texans, Colts, Bengals, and Falcons on one side, with the Cardinals, Jaguars, 49ers, Titans, and Vikings rounding out the slate. What we don't know yet is the order or the timing, which often makes all the difference.

Ahead of the schedule release, NFL insider Adam Schefter dropped each team's strength of schedule, calculated using opponents' 2025 winning percentages. According to that metric, the Commanders land right in the middle of the pack, holding the 16th-toughest schedule in the league. Their opponents posted a combined .502 winning percentage last season—essentially a coin flip for every game.

Here's the catch: among the four NFC East teams, Washington draws the toughest schedule on paper. That might sound daunting, but it's important to remember that last year's records don't tell the whole story. The Commanders themselves struggled in 2025 largely due to injuries, and they're widely expected to bounce back strong in 2026. A team's trajectory can change quickly in this league.

The real key? How the schedule falls—the bye weeks, the short weeks, the cold-weather games. That's the detail that can turn a tough slate into a manageable one. We'll have the full picture in about 24 hours, so stay tuned.