The 49ers will face the following opponents during the upcoming season:
Home: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs
Away: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Below is the NFL ranking based on strength of schedule:
| Rank | Team | SOS | Opp. Win Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Cleveland Browns | 158-131 | .547 |
| 2. | Baltimore Ravens | 155-134 | .536 |
| 3. | Pittsburgh Steelers | 154-135 | .533 |
| T-4. | Houston Texans | 152-137 | .526 |
| T-4. | Green Bay Packers | 152-137 | .526 |
| T-6. | New York Giants | 149-140 | .516 |
| T-6. | Buffalo Bills | 149-140 | .516 |
| T-8. | Jacksonville Jaguars | 148-141 | .512 |
| T-8. | Las Vegas Raiders | 148-141 | .512 |
| T-8. | New England Patriots | 148-141 | .512 |
| 11. | Detroit Lions | 147-142 | .509 |
| T-12. | Los Angeles Rams | 146-143 | .505 |
| T-12. | San Francisco 49ers | 146-143 | .505 |
| T-12. | Dallas Cowboys | 146-143 | .505 |
| T-12. | New York Jets | 146-143 | .505 |
| T-16. | Cincinnati Bengals | 145-144 | .502 |
| T-16. | Washington Commanders | 145-144 | .502 |
| T-16. | Minnesota Vikings | 145-144 | .502 |
| T-16. | Kansas City Chiefs | 145-144 | .502 |
| 20. | Denver Broncos | 143-146 | .495 |
| T-21. | Indianapolis Colts | 142-147 | .491 |
| T-21. | Philadelphia Eagles | 142-147 | .491 |
| T-21. | Tennessee Titans | 142-147 | .491 |
| T-24. | Arizona Cardinals | 141-148 | .488 |
| T-24. | Seattle Seahawks | 141-148 | .488 |
| T-24. | Miami Dolphins | 141-148 | .488 |
| T-27. | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 138-151 | .478 |
| T-27. | Los Angeles Chargers | 138-151 | .478 |
| T-29. | Carolina Panthers | 135-154 | .467 |
| T-29. | Chicago Bears | 135-154 | .467 |
| T-31. | New Orleans Saints | 131-158 | .453 |
| T-31. | Atlanta Falcons | 131-158 | .453 |
Patra acknowledges that strength of schedule can be a flawed metric since it is purely based on each team's performance last season without taking into account any offseason changes. Teams can turn things around quickly with free agency and a successful draft.
"As long as we don't make grand predictions based on a flimsy metric, perusing SOS can be a simple, fun way to look at the upcoming season," Patra wrote.