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ESPN: Winners, Losers Of 2017 NFL Schedule Release

Trainmaster : 4/21/2017 1:39 pm
A surprisingly good article IMHO, given it's from ESPN:

Not good for the Giants:

Quote:

Overall, the Giants might have the NFL's least enviable schedule, based on ESPN senior analytics specialist Brian Burke's analysis. They'll have an NFL-high four games against teams coming off their bye and a net total of minus-22 days of rest compared to their opponents. (The next-highest lack of rest days belongs to the Detroit Lions at minus-12.)

Here is some analysis from Football Outsiders on how relative rest affects competitiveness. Suffice it to say, you want to avoid playing teams who are coming off their bye.

Finally, the Giants have four trips into the Mountain or Pacific time zones, giving them more travel miles than any East Coast team with the exception of the Jaguars, who have a home game in London.


Not good for the Raiders either:

Quote:

The most difficult stretch for any team belongs to the Raiders, who will play five teams between Weeks 11 and 15 that had a combined .738 winning percentage in 2016.


Trying to help the bottom dwellers?

Quote:
The Browns and Jaguars are the only teams this season that won't face a short week and who won't have to tweak their weekly schedules at all to accommodate alternate game days or times.



Link To ESPN Winners, Losers of 2017 NFL Schedule Release Article - ( New Window )
I think there are some obvious factors  
Beezer : 4/21/2017 1:50 pm : link
this and other commentaries mention (travel, perceived strength of opponents, those opponents' off-weeks, etc).

But there's no way to gauge chemistry, nor is there any pre-season scale of how healthy (or not) a team will be.

Two things in the Giants' favor: An intact defense that played very well together in 2016; a very good reversal of trend (we hope) with a new trainer/training.

If the Giants stay healthy, if the adds on offense are as solid as we think they might be (Marshall is the obvious one, but also Ellison at TE/H-Back, and maybe even Fluker), and if it's a fruitful draft, then the schedule simply becomes a bump in the road.
This is writing about something  
allstarjim : 4/21/2017 1:55 pm : link
just to write about something. Shouldn't even give it any extra attention. There are no winners and losers to how the schedule is laid out. It's just silly.
I don't care..  
Big Blue '56 : 4/21/2017 1:55 pm : link
1 at a time..The O needs to improve. If, as I expect, it does, I don't care who we play or when we play them..
I wish everyone had your POV  
Kivorka : 4/21/2017 2:11 pm : link
Never understood all the whining and bitching
RE: This is writing about something ...  
Trainmaster : 4/21/2017 2:11 pm : link
I disagree.

When you play a given team/game, who they played the prior week, who they play the next week are all factors. The schedule is obviously not as important as the quality of your players, quality of coaching staff etc., but I think it is a non-trivial factor. Having a very early or very late bye is a factor.

If you're playing a home game against a team traveling across the country, a team coming off a Monday night game is an advantage.

If you're playing an away game against a team that had a bye or a home Thursday night game, you're at a disadvantage.

We all hear coaches say "One game at a time", but I'd be very surprised if coaches don't create strategies based on the timing of the games in their schedule.
It is what it is  
djstat : 4/21/2017 3:11 pm : link
When every other year you play the West divisions, travel is tough. DEAL WITH it. Id rather have to travel West then be out West and travel EAST. $hit happens. Play football.
I agree that travel is/should be a non-issue...  
Dan in the Springs : 4/21/2017 3:31 pm : link
Not that it doesn't hurt, but it is what it is and everyone has to deal with it one way or the other.

It is somewhat painful if the Giants truly asked for scheduling that would allow back-to-back west coast games and were denied, especially if other teams have this granted to them.

The part about playing teams off their bye does seem unfair. I'm not sure why they've done this, but in theory everyone should have one game where they face an opponent coming off their bye, and one game where they are coming off their bye and face their opponent. This would give everyone a net of (almost) zero, with exceptions being Monday, Thursday, and Saturday games.

To have such a gap (negative 22) compared to the rest of the league seems wrong and should be taken into consideration going forward.
This is like complaining about the weather 3 months from now  
j_rud : 4/21/2017 3:38 pm : link
"It might be hot, it could rain, maybe it'll be overcast, it might be beautiful. All I know is that it's some serious *bullshit*..."
Again, Not Complaining  
Trainmaster : 4/21/2017 3:47 pm : link
Just offering an analysis performed by others relative to the hand we've been dealt. Of course no choice, but for the coaching staff to deal with it as best as they can.

I'm sure Belichick deals with whatever schedule he's dealt with better than say a Rich Kotite.





The one thing about the schedule that really bothers me...  
Big Blue Blogger : 4/21/2017 4:57 pm : link
...is going to Philly after a Monday night game. That's a pivotal matchup, especially if the Giants don't upset Dallas in Week 1. (And yes - it would be an upset.)
Eh  
Jesse B : 4/21/2017 6:24 pm : link
The whole division has a decent amount if travel
..  
Sean : 4/21/2017 6:26 pm : link
Having 3 division games at home in December is what matters to me
RE: The one thing about the schedule that really bothers me...  
mrvax : 4/21/2017 7:27 pm : link
In comment 13437834 Big Blue Blogger said:
Quote:
...is going to Philly after a Monday night game. That's a pivotal matchup, especially if the Giants don't upset Dallas in Week 1. (And yes - it would be an upset.)


Disagree. I wouldn't be upset one bit.
I do think the comparative rest thing  
santacruzom : 4/21/2017 7:29 pm : link
and 4 games against opponents off a bye is annoying as fuck.
Last  
oldog : 4/22/2017 10:56 am : link
year the marshmellow section in the middle of the schedule, helped the Giants to develop a strong winning momentum, and a defensive identity that resulted in an 11-5 record, beyond almost all of the pre-season expectations on this web site. The placement of the first game, before the Steers developed their mid-season identity and momentum, was also very helpful. This year's season is different, difficult at the start, and through the middle, a bit easier at the end. There is no soft spot this year before the character of the teams will be determined, so there is just no real schedule help. Last year's schedule arguably was worth a game or two to the Giants over no effect, this year looks to be a game or so harder. But if the Giants are as good as they look to be, this year the extra challenge can be handled.
RE: The one thing about the schedule that really bothers me...  
BigBlueShock : 4/22/2017 11:30 am : link
In comment 13437834 Big Blue Blogger said:
Quote:
...is going to Philly after a Monday night game. That's a pivotal matchup, especially if the Giants don't upset Dallas in Week 1. (And yes - it would be an upset.)

I'm not sure how you think so definitively that the Giants winning that game would be an upset. The Giants beat them twice last year and Dallas lost a TON of players on defense. Sure it may be an "upset" if you're going with the Vegas line but that's not really indicative of who the better team is. I expect the Vegas line to be around +3 anyways, so that's basically a draw given the 3 points given for home field. Of course, a lot can change between now and then, but as it stands, the Giants beating Dallas in week one would not be an upset at all, imo.
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