Real1st;2230010 said:
I don't know the criteria for scheduling in the NFL but how does the patriots get the easiest schedule?
http://www.theredzone.org/strength.asp
The Pats actually have the toughest non-division schedule out of all of the AFC East teams. They each face the entire AFC West, but the Pats face the Colts and Steelers because they were the best teams in their divisions.
The reason why the Pats have the easiest overall strength of schedule, particularly in comparison to the rest of the AFC East was they were entirely better than Miami, Buffalo, and the Jets.
So when the Pats play their divisional opponents, each of whom they play twice, the Pats technically get that easy schedule because they don't face themselves.
For instance, the Pats went 16-0 last season while the Fins went 1-15. Since they play each other twice, the Fins are playing a 16-0 twice on their schedule. On the flip side, the Pats are playing a 1-15 team twice on their schedule. So when you total up the wins, just on this alone, the Pats come away with a 2-30 team to their schedule while the Fins come away with a 32-0 team on their schedule.
YAKUZA