Carolina Panthers safety Nick Scott (21) celebrates recovering a fumble by Green Bay Packers wide receiver Savion Williams (83) during their football game Sunday, November 2, 2025, at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

2026 opponents for Carolina Panthers are unyieldingly brutal

Originally posted on Carolina Panthers on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Jan 6, 2026 1:09 PM ET

The Carolina Panthers went 8-9, but because they play in the NFC South, that was enough to win a tiebreaker for the division. They are the champions, which means they get to host a playoff game this weekend.

It also means they get a first-place schedule next season. This is not exactly ideal, because the Panthers were not a typical first-place team. In any other division, they'd have finished no better than second.

8-9 and sneaking into the playoffs is not a great, fantastic, wonderful season by any means. But it might be the best we get for a little while, because next year could be brutal.

Carolina Panthers' home and away opponents for 2026 revealed

Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The Panthers ended up playing a pretty difficult schedule in 2025. They faced the NFC's top seed as well as seven playoff teams. All in all, they ended up with the 10th-hardest schedule in 2025.

#NFL 2025 Strength of Schedule Recap
Who Had the Easiest Path in 2025 - and Who Faced the Toughest? pic.twitter.com/bGWjB84N0p
— SFdata9ers (@sfdata9ers) January 5, 2026

They did pretty well because of that, as evidenced by the chart below. They had a hard schedule, but they were able to sneak into the playoffs in spite of that. It all bodes pretty well, because while they weren't good this year, they were good enough with a high degree of difficulty.

Actual Win Percentage vs. Strength of Schedule Faced pic.twitter.com/cSdMIIlb0X
— SFdata9ers (@sfdata9ers) January 5, 2026

Heavy is the head that wears the crown, though. It does not get any easier. The teams they face in 2026 will look different than they do now, but the Panthers have a very daunting slate of opponents coming up:

2026 home
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Atlanta Falcons
New Orleans Saints
Detroit Lions
Chicago Bears
Baltimore Ravens
Cincinnati Bengals
Seattle Seahawks
Denver Broncos
2026 away
New Orleans Saints
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Atlanta Falcons
Minnesota Vikings
Pittsburgh Steelers
Cleveland Browns
Philadelphia Eagles

On first glance, there are not a lot of winnable contests there. They could slide backward unless they make some pretty substantial moves this year. They will get better, with free agency, the draft, and natural progression of young players, but good enough?

Will the Panthers be able to contend with the Seahawks? Not likely. What about the Broncos? Also not likely. The Ravens, Bears, Lions, Eagles, and Vikings are potentially troublesome as well.

Put simply, enjoy this season. It could get worse from here.

This article first appeared on Carolina Panthers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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