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Easiest Schedules by Position: The 2026 Team-by-Team Read
The companion piece to the round-by-round SOS values page covers the position-by-position read. Which NFL teams face the easiest defenses at quarterback in 2026? At running back? At wide receiver and tight end? The DraftSOS model computes a separate strength-of-schedule composite for each position because defensive quality is not uniform across positions. A defense can be elite against the run and soft against the pass, which produces very different schedule edges for running backs than for wide receivers on the same NFL team. The list below is the team-by-team read at each position, with the players who get the largest schedule-adjusted value boosts.
1. Quarterback: The Easiest 2026 Schedules
Quarterback is the most matchup-sensitive position in fantasy football. A soft defensive schedule at quarterback can swing projected output by 4 to 8 points per game, which is the gap between a top-5 weekly finish and a top-15 weekly finish. The 2026 NFL teams with the easiest quarterback schedules, in order, are Baltimore, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Houston, and Arizona. Quarterbacks on those teams get the largest schedule-adjusted projection boosts in the DraftSOS model.
Lamar Jackson (A2, ecr_rank 9, ADP 53) has the single easiest quarterback schedule in 2026 by the model's composite ranking. His weeks 1 through 6 schedule includes three defenses that ranked bottom-10 against opposing quarterbacks in 2024, and his playoff-week schedule is similarly soft. The projection system pushes Jackson from tier-A2 by consensus to tier-A2-plus on the SOS edge, which at ADP 53 is the highest-value quarterback pick in the 2026 pool.
Jalen Hurts (A1, ecr_rank 4, ADP 93.1) has the second-easiest quarterback schedule, with the specific edge that his week-16 matchup is against the league's worst defense against rushing quarterbacks. Hurts's rushing floor is what separates him from the other tier-A1 arms, and the schedule concentrates that edge into the championship week specifically. His ADP at pick 93 is three full rounds behind his tier grade, which is the largest quarterback discount in 2026 best-ball formats.
Joe Burrow (B1, ecr_rank 11, ADP 47.6), C.J. Stroud (B1, ecr_rank 14, ADP 154.9), and Kyler Murray (C2, ecr_rank 37, ADP 149.3) round out the top-5 easiest quarterback schedules. Stroud at ADP 155 is the deepest discount in the group, a full 100 picks behind his tier-B1 grade, and his schedule is the second-softest among tier-B1 arms behind Burrow.
2. Running Back: The Easiest 2026 Schedules
Running back is less matchup-sensitive than quarterback because workload dominates the projection at the position. A running back with 18 carries and 4 targets per game is a top-15 play regardless of the defense he's facing. The schedule edge at running back matters most for pass-catching backs in negative game scripts and for running backs facing defenses that allowed the most receiving yards to opposing backfields in 2024.
The 2026 NFL teams with the easiest running back schedules, in order, are Detroit, Miami, San Francisco, Houston, and Baltimore. The common thread is that all five offenses ran a high percentage of plays in 2024 and threw a high percentage of targets to running backs. More plays means more opportunities for the running back position, which compounds the schedule edge.
Jahmyr Gibbs (A2, ecr_rank 10, ADP 2.0) has the easiest running back schedule in 2026 by the model's composite ranking. His early-season schedule includes three bottom-10 run defenses in the first five weeks, and his pass-game role in Detroit's offense is already among the league leaders. The projection system pushes his value up by roughly 1.5 points per game in the early-season window, which matters for season-long win rate because early-season wins compound into playoff seeding.
De'Von Achane (B2, ecr_rank 23, ADP 9.3) has the second-easiest running back schedule. Miami's offense ran the second-most plays per game in 2024, and Achane's target share in that offense gives him a pass-game floor that the schedule edge compounds. His ADP at pick 9.3 prices him as a top-10 overall pick, which is a tier above his consensus grade. The schedule edge is part of why the ADP premium is justifiable, though his tier-B2 consensus grade makes him a fade at ADP if you discount the SOS edge.
Breece Hall (A2, ecr_rank 8, ADP 29.1) has the easiest pass-catching-back schedule specifically. His weeks 15 through 17 schedule includes the three defenses that allowed the most receiving yards to opposing backfields in 2024. That edge is what makes Hall the textbook positive-playoff-SOS running back in 2026, and the model recommends prioritizing him in the late first or early second round of PPR formats.
3. Wide Receiver: The Easiest 2026 Schedules
Wide receiver is where the schedule edge is smallest, because target share dominates the projection at the position. A wide receiver with a 28-percent target share is a top-12 weekly play regardless of the corner he's facing. The schedule edge that does exist at wide receiver concentrates in the late-round values, where a receiver drawing a soft schedule can produce a championship-winning spike week.
The 2026 NFL teams with the easiest wide receiver schedules, in order, are Cincinnati, Houston, Philadelphia, Arizona, and Baltimore. The common thread is that all five teams have a clear WR1 facing defenses that ranked bottom-12 against opposing WR1s in 2024. The schedule edge matters more for WR1 targets than for WR2 or slot receivers because the WR1 draw the opponent's top corner, and the gap between an elite corner and a soft corner is larger than the gap at the WR2 spot.
Ja'Marr Chase (A1, ecr_rank 3, ADP 3.8) has the easiest WR1 schedule in 2026. His weeks 1 through 8 schedule includes four defenses that ranked bottom-12 against opposing WR1s, and his playoff-week schedule is similarly soft. Chase is a first-round pick regardless of schedule, but the SOS edge is part of why his tier-A1 grade is the highest-confidence projection at the position.
Nico Collins (B2, ecr_rank 22, ADP 23.7) has the second-easiest WR1 schedule and is being drafted at his tier grade. His weeks 14 through 17 schedule is the softest among tier-B2 wide receivers, which pushes his value up by roughly 2 points per game in the playoff window. At ADP 23.7, that makes him a value pick in rounds 2-3 of PPR formats.
A.J. Brown (B2, ecr_rank 26, ADP 14.5) and Malik Nabers (B1, ecr_rank 16, ADP 43) are the two late-round values with positive playoff-week SOS edges at wide receiver. Nabers specifically has the highest-SOS-edge among tier-B1 wide receivers, with three playoff-week matchups against bottom-12 WR1 defenses. At ADP 43, that makes him the highest-value wide receiver pick in rounds 3-4 of PPR formats.
4. Tight End: The Easiest 2026 Schedules
Tight end is the second-most matchup-sensitive position in fantasy football, behind only quarterback. The 2026 NFL teams with the easiest tight end schedules, in order, are Baltimore, Cincinnati, Arizona, Houston, and Las Vegas. The common thread is that all five teams have a tight end who commands at least 18 percent of the team's target share and faces defenses that ranked bottom-10 against opposing tight ends in 2024.
Mark Andrews (C2, ecr_rank 38, ADP 130) has the easiest tight end schedule in 2026 by the model's composite ranking. His weeks 14 through 17 schedule includes three matchups against defenses that ranked bottom-10 against opposing tight ends, and his playoff-week schedule is the softest among tier-C2 tight ends by a wide margin. The projection system pushes Andrews from tier-C2 by consensus to tier-C1 on the SOS edge, which at ADP 130 is the highest-value tight end pick in the 2026 pool.
Trey McBride (B1, ecr_rank 18, ADP 65.2) has the second-easiest tight end schedule and is being drafted at his tier grade. His early-season schedule includes four bottom-12 tight-end defenses in the first eight weeks, which compounds the target-share edge he already commands in Arizona's offense. At ADP 65.2 in PPR formats, that makes him a value pick in rounds 5-6 behind the consensus top-3 tight ends (Brock Bowers, Sam LaPorta, George Kittle).
The late-round tight end values with positive playoff-week SOS edges are Dalton Kincaid (C1, ecr_rank 32, ADP 88.4) and David Njoku (C2, ecr_rank 35, ADP 110.7). Both have weeks 15-17 schedules against defenses that ranked bottom-12 against opposing tight ends in 2024. The model recommends either as the late-round tight end target in best-ball builds, with Andrews as the priority if his ADP falls to pick 130 or later.
5. How the Model Ranks Schedules by Position
The DraftSOS model computes a separate strength-of-schedule composite for each fantasy position. The composite is built from the defensive rankings against that specific position in 2024, weighted by the share of the opponent's defense that the position represents. For quarterback, the composite weights both pass defense and rushing-quarterback defense, because dual-threat quarterbacks get rushing value that doesn't show up in pass-defense rankings alone.
For running back, the composite weights run defense and receiving-back defense separately. A defense can be elite against the run and soft against receiving backs, which produces different edges for workhorse backs than for pass-catching backs on the same NFL team. The matrix grid shows both edges for each running back, which is why some backs have different schedule-adjusted values in PPR formats than in standard formats.
For wide receiver, the composite weights WR1 defense, slot defense, and overall pass defense. The WR1 weighting matters most for clear WR1 targets like Chase, Collins, and Brown, because they draw the opponent's top corner. Slot defense matters more for slot-heavy receivers like Kupp and Addison. The model adjusts the weighting based on the receiver's alignment in the offense.
For tight end, the composite weights tight-end defense specifically. Tight-end defense is the most variable defensive metric year over year, because tight-end targets are concentrated in the red zone and a single touchdown can swing a defense's ranking by 5 to 10 spots. The model weights the second half of the 2024 season more heavily than the first half to account for this variance.
6. Drafting from the Easiest Schedules
The practical takeaway from the position-by-position read is that the easiest schedules concentrate on a small number of NFL teams. Baltimore, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Houston, and Arizona appear at or near the top of the rankings at multiple positions. Drafting skill-position players from those teams compounds the SOS edge across multiple roster spots, which is the strategy that wins best-ball formats where correlated ceiling weeks matter.
The Ravens stack (Lamar Jackson at quarterback, Mark Andrews at tight end) is the model's highest-confidence 2026 stack because both players get the easiest schedule at their respective positions. The Bengals stack (Joe Burrow at quarterback, Ja'Marr Chase at wide receiver) is the second-highest-confidence stack for the same reason. Drafting either stack in the early rounds of a best-ball draft is the model's recommended approach to capitalizing on the easiest schedules in 2026.
The matrix grid below shows every player's schedule-adjusted value at each pick slot in a PPR snake draft. If your draft position is locked in, click your pick slot for the full breakdown of which players are available at that slot with the strongest schedule edges.