Baseball calls its offseason "The Hot Stove."
The NFL has no unofficial moniker for its downtime. Maybe that's because even when there are no games being played, there is no downtime.
Therefore, this week, our focus turns to the National Football League. Here is a quick preview:
Today: Guess who has the easiest schedule in the league in 2008?
Tuesday: What has happened to the AFC West? (Excluding you, San Diego, but as Ron Burgundy would say, "stay classy" anyway.)
Wednesday: Possibly rethinking the Rooney Rule.
Thursday: The teams ready to make a big vault into playoff contention.
Friday: The teams perhaps taking a step back.
There you have it, so without any further weekly planning, let's begin.
So, who has the easiest schedule in the NFL in 2008?
I have a feeling you are not going to like this answer, but as if the Patriots don't have enough going for them...
You surprised it's New England?
Consider this statistic comparing their past success and future potential: In 2007, during the regular season, the Patriots on the way to a 16-0 record, defeated six teams that had at least 10 victories. In 2008, the combined win percentage of their opponents is .387. That is lower than the Broncos success rate in the NFL Draft.
I am sorry, that was too easy.
The Patriots, as always, will play the AFC East teams twice. That means a pair of contests each with the 1-15 Dolphins, the 4-12 Jets, and the 7-9 Bills.
The AFC West is another group they will play. That means a game at San Diego. However, that doesn't seem so bad considering, after that test, they also get to face the 4-12 Raiders, the 4-12 Chiefs, and the 7-9 Broncos. I mean, there's a reason they call this division the "AFC Worst."
They will face the NFC West as well. That means the 3-13 Rams, the San Francisco team that had two quarterbacks and five wins, the 8-8 Cardinals, and the 10-6 Seahawks.
In all, the Patriots will face five teams with a winning mark. They face just one team, Pittsburgh, with a winning record at home.
The combined winning percentage of Denver's opponents is .417. So, a big season is not out of the question. If they can regain some of what used to be a huge home field edge, it could that much more special.
The Broncos, like the Patriots, face five teams with a winning record. They are New England, San Diego, Jacksonville, Cleveland, and Tampa Bay. Three of the five are division winners and four of the five won at least 10 games last season.
They also have seven games against teams that are considered among the worst in the NFL. That would include the Raiders and Chiefs each twice, the Jets, the Dolphins, and the 4-12 Atlanta Falcons. Therefore, their schedule may not be as easy as that of New England, though there are plenty of winnable games, a reason to be optimistic for a nice season.
One last thing to keep in mind. Teams that struggle one year in the NFL can rebound quickly. In 2006, the Bucs finished in last place in the NFC South. In 2007, they won it. The Saints made the same leap from 2005 to 2006. The Browns went from four wins in 2006 to ten last season. Therefore, having an easy schedule is beneficial, but a lot of teams that struggle one year, the numbers show, may not be easy opponents the following season.
Have a great day, I hope to see you here tomorrow.
-"z"
