Now that the NFL’s schedules have been released, every team knows who and when they will be playing in the upcoming months.
Some teams play in other countries, while some teams play on holidays which were never played on before. They will be fighting it out against their division rivalries for the whole world to see.
The one thing that I find most intriguing is the 17-game schedule. It sets the teams apart from the winners and losers of the league.
Does the NFL’s Scheduling Style Affect a Team’s Season Record?
The NFL 50-yard line – Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports
NFL’s 17-Game Schedule
The 17-game format is made up of six games of divisional matchups; four of them spiral graphed within the conference, four against the other division in the opposing conference. The other three games are determined by how the squad finished in its division standings.
These three contests against your opponents that finished in the identical place in three other divisions are the only judgment of competitive parody in NFL scheduling. Win your division, and you’re going up against three other division winners in those matchups. Finish at the bottom, and you get to face three others hiding in the basement.
Back when the new XFL and USFL weren’t around, only two out of 16 games were made by a schedule. In 2021, when that magical 17-game schedule was added, it was determined by creating a fifth non-conference opponent. It added more pressure to that slate of the schedule. Having two years of collected data, we can discover many new possibilities and opportunities of how that data affects an NFL’s team season and record.
Buffalo Bills – Timothy T. Ludwig/Getty Images
Which Team Favored the Best?
What looks like an easy schedule with three last-place teams, in reality, ends up being tough in the end, and a schedule with three defending winners ends up being a breeze.
The 2022 Buffalo Bills’ first-place schedule was played against the Super Bowl Champions (14-3) Kansas City Chiefs. Their first two games against the (5-12) Los Angeles Rams and (7-10) Tennessee Titans were cakewalks.
On the contrary, The New York Jets and the Detroit Lions received last-place schedules. They faced an eventual AFC South Divisional Champ in the Jacksonville Jaguars and a Wild Card team in the Seattle Seahawks.
London, here we come!! ??#GoBills | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/uI1v5ENWZW
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) May 10, 2023
London Game
On Sunday, October 8, 2023, the Buffalo Bills will head to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars. It will be held in Week 5 of the regular NFL season at 9:30 am EST. It will serve as one of the Bills’ nine scheduled home games.
Having the Bills play a potential playoff opponent against the Jaguars on a neutral site field in a European site like London, England, will give fans in the U.K. a chance to see two of the biggest American Star QBs on the Gridiron.
America already knows Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills and Trevor Lawrence of the Jacksonville Jaguars, but now the UK and the rest of the world will get to see them duke it out live.
It’ll give the Bills a chance to prepare against a great team like Jacksonville in case they see them again in the AFC Wildcard or AFC Divisional Playoff round. Playing them now is a great way to prepare for them ahead of time. It also gives the fans another game to see live if they so choose to.
Prime Video to Stream "Black Friday" @NFL Game in 2023
First-ever NFL Black Friday game on @PrimeVideo to take place Friday, November 24, 2023 w/ 3p ET expected kickoff
Release: https://t.co/G3p7jt5wb4
— NFL Media (@NFLMedia) October 18, 2022
Black Friday Game
In the league premiere NFL Black Friday game, Prime Video will host a show-stopping AFC Rivalry. The New York Jets will take on the Miami Dolphins on November 24, 2023, at 3:00 pm EST, at MetLife Stadium.
It will feature recently acquired Jets (QB) Aaron Rodgers and Dolphins (QB) Tua Tagovailoa, who has been coping with injuries from last year. It will be interesting to see how Rodgers does on his new team.
This will give both teams more fan recognition, as it is another day that many have off from work for the Holiday. While many people do go shopping on Black Friday, many people choose to use the internet to shop and stay home to watch another football game!
