The NFL’s official schedule was made public Friday night. Everyone began evaluating their “strength of schedule” for the 2024 NFL season as soon as it ended. Kevin published the strength of schedule for the Miami Dolphins today, breaking it down by quarter of the season. In addition, the analysis revealed that this year’s schedule was the 24th hardest in the NFL, while previous year’s was the second hardest.
The issue I have is that the schedule’s strength is determined by the previous season, and even though we play fourteen teams—three of them twice—none of them are the same clubs from the previous year. While a few others could very well be considerably better or worse, the Buffalo Bills, for instance, appear to have entered some sort of rebuilding mode and will likely take a step back this season. In the NFL, there’s one thing you can always bank on: some teams will always catch everyone off guard. Some will shock us by how awful they are in comparison to their previous campaign, while some will surprise us by emerging as one of their conference’s top clubs even after finishing last the previous season as a bottom feeder. Whether they support the New York Jets or the Cleveland Browns, these are some things that offer optimism to all NFL fans for the next campaign.
