CollegeKingRex
CTG Regular
One of the things I decided to break down first this summer when doing Niffel work was the schedule of all 32 teams, and my initial thoughts of it. Hope this is helpful to anyone who is considering betting on season win totals.
Feel free to add to any of my thoughts at your leisure.
AFC EAST
Buffalo - After back to back division games at Miami and against the Jets, the Bills only have one division game left before Thanksgiving week; they play 3 of their last 4 on the road with a trip to Foxboro to end the season. Possible sandwich spot at Detroit on Oct. 5 with a game at Houston the week before and New England coming to town the week after. Partially because of a bye in this stretch, the Bills only play two road games in a 62-day span. They better make hay; the final four are a trip to Denver, Green Bay at home, at Oakland and at NE to close the season. The Bills are 1-5 in regular season Toronto games, and have discontinued plans to play at SkyDome, at least for this year if not forever.
Miami - They play the Raiders in London, so they have only 7 true road games, and only one true road game before Oct. 19. Amazingly enough, six of their seven road games come in an 8-game stretch from Oct. 19 until a December 1st Monday Nighter at the Jets, the first of two meetings in 28 days with NYJ.
New England - The Pats are one of three teams to open up with two road games. That's part of the reason, with a bye thrown in, that they only play 1 road game in a 47-day stretch and none for five weeks. They close with three division games, two of which are at home after a stretch of 4 non-division games in 4 different cities in the weeks after their bye.
Jets - This is the only team that plays back-to-back games against their division foes three different times. Their first division game isn't until a Thursday nighter in Foxboro immediately following a home game against Denver. Denver and Oakland both visit for early Sunday starts; the only team to play more early games vs. West Coast teams than the Jets is St. Louis. Four of their last six games are in the division, and three of their last four are on the road. They have the bye immediately before that season ending stretch that will likely decide their post-season fate.
AFC NORTH
Baltimore - They are the only team to open with three straight division games. They play three of their first four at home, then play five games in five different cities over 29 days from Oct. 5 through Nov. 2. Included at the ass end of that stretch are games at Cincy and Pittsburgh. After that, the Ravens go until the last game of the season, a full eight weeks, before they play their last divisional game. It's safe to say the Ravens will have a good idea of what their postseason chances are before we're 48 hours into November. That said, this will be the fourth year in a row that they host a game on Thursday night, and they've yet to travel. Those are often the toughest spots of the year, especially against a divisional foe.
Cincinnati - The Bengals are one of four teams to play three straight road games. This starts a stretch that sees them travelling in five of their last seven, with the two home games in that span against Pittsburgh and Denver. The Bengals do play three straight at home immediately before that season-ending grinder, so it would be wise to make hay by time they are finished with Cleveland on a Thursday night jobber Nov. 6, as they go more than a calendar month before the next home game. The Bengals also have a September bye and play three division foes (including Pittsburgh twice in a 22-day stretch) in their last four games.
Cleveland - The Browns play four of six on the road to end the season. They have a September bye as well. None of their six division games are back-to-back.
Pittsburgh - The Steelers really get it in the pooper, as they play the maximum four back-to-back road games. They have a late bye as well, which immediately follows road trips to Jets and Tennessee in weeks 10 and 11. Their bye isn't until Week 12 so they could be really banged up heading into the Monday Nighter in Nashville, which also means they get one less day on their bye than normal (and travel tacks on several more hours they get cheated out of). Pitt does play three in a row at home from Oct. 20-Nov. 2 and gets the last two games at home as well. Pitt is one of only two teams (Carolina the other) with a Week 12 bye. I can't ever remember there being a Week 12 bye before this year. I'd say the schedule-makers won't be getting a Christmas card from the Pitt front office in a few months.
AFC SOUTH
Houston - The Texans play three back-to-back road games this year, one of only two teams (Frisco) who have it slightly better than the Steelers. Starting Nov. 30, they'll play four of their last five games against divisional foes, giving new coach Bill O'Brien plenty of time to tamper and tweak before the big games at the end of the season. The Sept 21 game at Giants seems a tough spot for them, sandwiched between a trip to Oakland and hosting the Bills, games that they have to think are winnable within the AFC. Because of a late-ish bye and the repeated back-to-back roadies, Houston does have a stretch where they play only 1 time away from town in 41 days before back to back division roadies in Jacksonville and Indy.
Indy - It would behoove Indy to stay healthy in their first two games against Denver and Philly. Following that is a stretch of four games in 19 days, with three of them being in the division. Twice this season the Colts will play four games in four weeks in four different cities. They do have a stretch that includes their bye that will keep them at home from Nov. 4 through Dec. 6.
Jacksonville - The Jags are one of three teams to open up with two roadies, but neither are against an AFC team. They do lose a home game to London scheduling and have a Week 11 bye. After the bye, if they are somehow in divisional contention, they'll control their own fate. Four of the last six games are against AFC South foes.
Tennessee - Mixed bag for the Titans. They open with three of four away from Nashville but go from Sept. 29 through Nov. 8 with just one road trip (including bye) before a brutal stretch of four games in 22 days in four different cities, with last one being a division game in Houston. They do close with three of four at home, although the one roadie is a short-week division trip to Jacksonville.
AFC WEST
Denver - None of their six division games are back-to-back, and that's about the only kind thing the schedule makers did for the reigning AFC champs. They have three straight roadies and also a back-to-back road scenario in December. The last road game after trips to New England and Oakland is an early-start time trip to St. Louis on Nov. 16, which surely is amongst the worst situational spots of the year for anybody. The Broncos have a very early bye, but at least it comes after playing at Seattle. Immediately before the three straight road games, they host the Chargers on a Thursday night after hosting the 49ers in the Sunday night game of Week 7. They will be very lucky to be near full-strength when hosting the hungry Chargers. These are the prices you pay when you leave Colorado two times before November.
Kansas City - Starting Nov. 2, the Chiefs don't have consecutive home OR road games (H/R/H/R/H/R/H/R/H) the rest of the season. They do have a stretch between Sept. 7 and Oct. 26 where they have no Sunday home games (only one overall). Horrible scheduling spot getting Oakland on the road four days after hosting the Chiefs (Nov. 16/20). That meeting in Oakland kicks off a stretch where the Chiefs close out the season with four division games in the last six weeks.
Oakland - The Raiders lose a home game when they "host" Miami in London at the end of September. They do go from Sept. 21 through Oct. 26 (including a bye) with no true road games, but six of their last 10 are roadies. They have a particularly brutal 12 day stretch where they play three division games at the start of November (9-20), although two of those games are at home. They are slated to have four games in the Eastern Time Zone if nothing changes, tied for most in the league with Diego.
San Diego - Diego also has a 3-division-games-in-12 days stretch from Oct. 12-23, but unlike Oakland, those games will be played in three different cities, including a short-week trip to Denver after hosting KC. The first five games are all outside the division. The Chargers also play four games with 1:00 EDT scheduled kicks and close the season with trips to Frisco and KC.
I'm freakin tired. I'll type up the NFC tomorrow when I can keep my eyes open.
:shake:
Feel free to add to any of my thoughts at your leisure.
AFC EAST
Buffalo - After back to back division games at Miami and against the Jets, the Bills only have one division game left before Thanksgiving week; they play 3 of their last 4 on the road with a trip to Foxboro to end the season. Possible sandwich spot at Detroit on Oct. 5 with a game at Houston the week before and New England coming to town the week after. Partially because of a bye in this stretch, the Bills only play two road games in a 62-day span. They better make hay; the final four are a trip to Denver, Green Bay at home, at Oakland and at NE to close the season. The Bills are 1-5 in regular season Toronto games, and have discontinued plans to play at SkyDome, at least for this year if not forever.
Miami - They play the Raiders in London, so they have only 7 true road games, and only one true road game before Oct. 19. Amazingly enough, six of their seven road games come in an 8-game stretch from Oct. 19 until a December 1st Monday Nighter at the Jets, the first of two meetings in 28 days with NYJ.
New England - The Pats are one of three teams to open up with two road games. That's part of the reason, with a bye thrown in, that they only play 1 road game in a 47-day stretch and none for five weeks. They close with three division games, two of which are at home after a stretch of 4 non-division games in 4 different cities in the weeks after their bye.
Jets - This is the only team that plays back-to-back games against their division foes three different times. Their first division game isn't until a Thursday nighter in Foxboro immediately following a home game against Denver. Denver and Oakland both visit for early Sunday starts; the only team to play more early games vs. West Coast teams than the Jets is St. Louis. Four of their last six games are in the division, and three of their last four are on the road. They have the bye immediately before that season ending stretch that will likely decide their post-season fate.
AFC NORTH
Baltimore - They are the only team to open with three straight division games. They play three of their first four at home, then play five games in five different cities over 29 days from Oct. 5 through Nov. 2. Included at the ass end of that stretch are games at Cincy and Pittsburgh. After that, the Ravens go until the last game of the season, a full eight weeks, before they play their last divisional game. It's safe to say the Ravens will have a good idea of what their postseason chances are before we're 48 hours into November. That said, this will be the fourth year in a row that they host a game on Thursday night, and they've yet to travel. Those are often the toughest spots of the year, especially against a divisional foe.
Cincinnati - The Bengals are one of four teams to play three straight road games. This starts a stretch that sees them travelling in five of their last seven, with the two home games in that span against Pittsburgh and Denver. The Bengals do play three straight at home immediately before that season-ending grinder, so it would be wise to make hay by time they are finished with Cleveland on a Thursday night jobber Nov. 6, as they go more than a calendar month before the next home game. The Bengals also have a September bye and play three division foes (including Pittsburgh twice in a 22-day stretch) in their last four games.
Cleveland - The Browns play four of six on the road to end the season. They have a September bye as well. None of their six division games are back-to-back.
Pittsburgh - The Steelers really get it in the pooper, as they play the maximum four back-to-back road games. They have a late bye as well, which immediately follows road trips to Jets and Tennessee in weeks 10 and 11. Their bye isn't until Week 12 so they could be really banged up heading into the Monday Nighter in Nashville, which also means they get one less day on their bye than normal (and travel tacks on several more hours they get cheated out of). Pitt does play three in a row at home from Oct. 20-Nov. 2 and gets the last two games at home as well. Pitt is one of only two teams (Carolina the other) with a Week 12 bye. I can't ever remember there being a Week 12 bye before this year. I'd say the schedule-makers won't be getting a Christmas card from the Pitt front office in a few months.
AFC SOUTH
Houston - The Texans play three back-to-back road games this year, one of only two teams (Frisco) who have it slightly better than the Steelers. Starting Nov. 30, they'll play four of their last five games against divisional foes, giving new coach Bill O'Brien plenty of time to tamper and tweak before the big games at the end of the season. The Sept 21 game at Giants seems a tough spot for them, sandwiched between a trip to Oakland and hosting the Bills, games that they have to think are winnable within the AFC. Because of a late-ish bye and the repeated back-to-back roadies, Houston does have a stretch where they play only 1 time away from town in 41 days before back to back division roadies in Jacksonville and Indy.
Indy - It would behoove Indy to stay healthy in their first two games against Denver and Philly. Following that is a stretch of four games in 19 days, with three of them being in the division. Twice this season the Colts will play four games in four weeks in four different cities. They do have a stretch that includes their bye that will keep them at home from Nov. 4 through Dec. 6.
Jacksonville - The Jags are one of three teams to open up with two roadies, but neither are against an AFC team. They do lose a home game to London scheduling and have a Week 11 bye. After the bye, if they are somehow in divisional contention, they'll control their own fate. Four of the last six games are against AFC South foes.
Tennessee - Mixed bag for the Titans. They open with three of four away from Nashville but go from Sept. 29 through Nov. 8 with just one road trip (including bye) before a brutal stretch of four games in 22 days in four different cities, with last one being a division game in Houston. They do close with three of four at home, although the one roadie is a short-week division trip to Jacksonville.
AFC WEST
Denver - None of their six division games are back-to-back, and that's about the only kind thing the schedule makers did for the reigning AFC champs. They have three straight roadies and also a back-to-back road scenario in December. The last road game after trips to New England and Oakland is an early-start time trip to St. Louis on Nov. 16, which surely is amongst the worst situational spots of the year for anybody. The Broncos have a very early bye, but at least it comes after playing at Seattle. Immediately before the three straight road games, they host the Chargers on a Thursday night after hosting the 49ers in the Sunday night game of Week 7. They will be very lucky to be near full-strength when hosting the hungry Chargers. These are the prices you pay when you leave Colorado two times before November.
Kansas City - Starting Nov. 2, the Chiefs don't have consecutive home OR road games (H/R/H/R/H/R/H/R/H) the rest of the season. They do have a stretch between Sept. 7 and Oct. 26 where they have no Sunday home games (only one overall). Horrible scheduling spot getting Oakland on the road four days after hosting the Chiefs (Nov. 16/20). That meeting in Oakland kicks off a stretch where the Chiefs close out the season with four division games in the last six weeks.
Oakland - The Raiders lose a home game when they "host" Miami in London at the end of September. They do go from Sept. 21 through Oct. 26 (including a bye) with no true road games, but six of their last 10 are roadies. They have a particularly brutal 12 day stretch where they play three division games at the start of November (9-20), although two of those games are at home. They are slated to have four games in the Eastern Time Zone if nothing changes, tied for most in the league with Diego.
San Diego - Diego also has a 3-division-games-in-12 days stretch from Oct. 12-23, but unlike Oakland, those games will be played in three different cities, including a short-week trip to Denver after hosting KC. The first five games are all outside the division. The Chargers also play four games with 1:00 EDT scheduled kicks and close the season with trips to Frisco and KC.
I'm freakin tired. I'll type up the NFC tomorrow when I can keep my eyes open.
:shake:
