The Detroit Lions are once again one of the top contenders for the Super Bowl in 2025, even after a disappointing 2024 finish.

After being one of the surprise teams in 2023 and making a trip all the way to the NFC Championship Game that year, the Lions took a step forward in terms of wins during the regular season but didn’t make it as far in the playoffs, with the team getting bounced in the divisional round by the upstart Washington Commanders.

While the Lions are the favorite in the NFC North once again, getting back to the playoffs won’t be easy.

That’s because the Lions have the third-toughest strength of schedule in the NFL, according to Warren Sharp of Sharp Football Analysis, who calculates strength of schedule using 2025 win totals from Vegas oddsmakers. Detroit’s schedule is the second-toughest in the NFC behind only the New York Giants.

Some outlets measure strength of schedule using the previous season’s win totals, but that is not exactly a great way to do it. After all, NFL teams make changes during the offseason and can rapidly ascend or decline year-to-year.

Last year, the Lions had the 12th-toughest slate going into the season, so things figure to be more difficult this year. However, if there’s any team that can successfully navigate a tough schedule, it’s an elite team like Detroit.

While we don’t have the Lions’ exact schedule yet (that will be released on May 14), we do know who they’re going to face. Here’s a look.

Home: Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Road: Bears, Packers, Vikings, Washington Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City and Los Angeles Rams.

Of course, the Lions are playing a first-place schedule, which in and of itself will make the slate difficult.

Of their 14 opponents, a whopping nine of them made the playoffs last season, and all of them should be good again in 2025. Adding to that, teams like the Bears and Bengals should be better than last season and are playoff contenders.

With the NFL being so unpredictable year-to-year, it’s hard to predict how well the Lions will do, especially with a tough slate. But what we can say for sure if that Detroit will be battle-tested once the regular season is over.