The Arizona Cardinals have the toughest fantasy schedule out of all NFC West teams
Heading down the list and getting to the nitty gritty, we showcase the seventh part of the SOS series. Three of the four teams join Seattle (featured at No. 24 last article) to round out the NFC West. This division has the tall task of playing both the NFC and AFC North divisions, which featured five 2014 playoff teams. The NFC West was no slouch itself, featuring two playoff teams and a third that finished 8-8. This formula equates to very little in terms of easy games in 2015.
This gets broken down below as the SOS series introduces teams 25 through 28.
SOS RANKINGS
#25 Rank = Easiest Schedule
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25. St. Louis Rams
Division: NFC West
Bye Week: 6
SOS by position: QB 28th, RB 31st, WR 24th, TE 2nd
Fantasy Playoff Schedule (14-16): vs. DET, vs. TB, at SEA
Week 17: at SF
Favorable Matchups (rank): WAS (30), CHI (29), TB (25)
Unfavorable Matchups (rank): SEA twice (1), ARI twice (5), BAL (9), GB (10)
Notable Fantasy Players: QB Nick Foles, RB Tre Mason, RB Todd Gurley-R, WR Tavon Austin, TE Jared Cook
Recap: Playing last place divisional schedule along with AFC North and NFC North. Only three games against bottom 12 teams. Six games against top 10 teams. Fantasy championship week takes place at Seattle where it is always tough to play. Lots of question marks on offense. Their own defense and special teams may be their top fantasy option unless Todd Gurley returns from his injury at 100 percent.
26. San Francisco 49ers
Division: NFC West
Bye Week: 10
SOS by position: QB 31st, RB 24th, WR 25th, TE 10th
Fantasy Playoff Schedule (14-16): at CLE, vs. CIN, at DET
Week 17: vs. STL
Favorable Matchups (rank): CHI (29), ATL (26), NYG (24)
Unfavorable Matchups (rank): SEA twice (1), STL twice (3), ARI twice (5), BAL (9), GB (10)
Notable Fantasy Players: QB Colin Kaepernick, RB Reggie Bush, RB Carlos Hyde, WR Torrey Smith, WR Anquan Boldin, TE Vernon Davis
Recap: Playing third-place divisional schedule along with both AFC and NFC North divisions. Only three games against bottom 12 teams and playing a hellacious eight games against top 10 teams including all three divisional opponents that are in the top five, six times. Schedule puts them in the central or eastern time zones six times including five early start games. New coaching regime but one of the hardest strength of schedules all around has boom or bust potential.
27. Cleveland Browns
Division: AFC North
Bye Week: 11
SOS by position: QB 25th, RB 30th, WR 29th, TE 8th
Fantasy Playoff Schedule (14-16): vs. SF, at SEA, at KC
Week 17: vs. PIT
Favorable Matchups (rank): OAK (32), TEN (31), SD (28)
Unfavorable Matchups (rank): SEA (1), STL (3), ARI (5), DEN (6), BAL twice (9), NYJ (11)
Notable Fantasy Players: RB Isaiah Crowell, RB Terrance West, RB Duke Johnson-R, WR Dwayne Bowe
Recap: Playing last place schedule and AFC West and NFC West. Only three games against bottom 12 teams, and seven against top 12 teams. Nothing to like about this fantasy situation. QB and RB situations are both up in the air and playing the sixth hardest fantasy schedule means disaster if you’re counting on Browns players. They finish the fantasy playoff season with two road games in SEA and KC – two of the hardest places to play for decent opposing teams. The Browns are far from decent.
28. Arizona Cardinals
Division: NFC West
Bye Week: 9
SOS by position: QB 26th, RB 23rd, WR 14th, TE 30th
Fantasy Playoff Schedule (14-16): vs. MIN, at PHI, vs. GB
Week 17: vs. SEA
Favorable Matchups (rank): CHI (29), NO (28)
Unfavorable Matchups (rank): SEA twice (1), STL twice (3), BAL (9), GB (10)
Notable Fantasy Players: QB Carson Palmer, RB Andre Ellington, WR Larry Fitzgerald, WR Michael Floyd, WR John Brown
Recap: Wild card champion playing second place divisional schedule and the NFC and AFC North. Only two games against bottom 12 teams and six against top 10 teams. Most of their schedule includes playing the middling fantasy defenses, which will be great if Arizona could get to the state they were in during the first half of the season, pre-Carson Palmer injury. Otherwise, without a decent passing game, they will become one dimensional and rely on their defense. Their fantasy playoff schedule is formidable, with two games coming at home. Four games against top three defenses within their division will be a challenge.
Teams 29 through 32 are coming up in the last article as we count down the hardest fantasy schedules in the NFL.
Michael Vincent is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MVtweetshere.
