Is the Broncos schedule really all that easy? Let’s break it down.
According to NFL Network, the Broncos have the easiest schedule among all 32 teams heading into next season. The Carolina Panthers reportedly have the most difficult. Excuse me for doubting the league’s very own television network, but isn’t it a bit early to make such assertions?
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According to NFL Network, the Broncos have the easiest schedule among all 32 teams heading into next season. The Carolina Panthers reportedly have the most difficult. Excuse me for doubting the league’s very own television network, but isn’t it a bit early to make such assertions? They base these claims on the cumulative records of all Denver’s opponents in 2012 but, if there’s one thing we know about the NFL, things are bound to change this year.
The fact that the Broncos play in the miserable AFC West is certainly one factor contributing to the perception that it’ll be easy skating for them in the coming year. Four games versus the Raiders and Chiefs mean that a quarter of their games are automatic softballs. Or does it? Sure, the Raiders are still going to be garbage, but isn’t there a decent chance that Andy Reid improves the Chiefs enough to snag at least a home win over the Broncos? The belief that they’ll be as bad as they were last year could be just as flawed as the thinking that they would win the division last season. I’m going to go ahead and assume that the Broncos will split with KC, just for the sake of this here piece. That makes them 3-1 versus two teams.
San Diego always plays the Broncos tough. Denver swept Phyllis and company last season, but not without some unlikely second half heroics. If they split with the Chargers in 2013 they’ll be 4-2 in the division. Just for fun let’s suggest that they sweep ‘em again, though. Now the Broncos are 5-1.
The AFC South is on the schedule this season. That division is a bit of a cupcake. The Broncos play Jacksonville, who they will slaughter, Tennessee, who is also a joke, and Indianapolis who will probably find a way to beat the Broncos. Andrew Luck can’t just stand there and let Peyton Manning beat him in the house that Peyton Manning built, can he? If the Colts don’t topple Denver, the Houston Texans will. Having gone 3-1 versus the South, now the Broncos are 8-2 and things are getting tougher.
The NFC East is one of the tougher divisions in football, and it’s on the agenda this coming season. The Broncos will play Eli and the Giants in New York, Washington and Philadelphia at Mile High and Dallas in Dallas on Thanksgiving. Let’s say that the Broncos split this series of games 2-2. That makes them 10-4 with Baltimore and New England left on the Schedule.
The Broncos will light the Ravens up. There’s little doubt about that. They’re going to be foaming at the mouth to get revenge on those criminals for the disaster in December. It’s a nationally televised Thursday night game which happens to kick off the 2013 season. The Broncos will be at their best. Besides, it’s a September game so it’ll still be warm enough outside for Peyton Manning. The Patriots game is at their place and it’s in November, so we can go ahead and call that one a loss. That leaves the Broncos 11-5.
That record is good enough for the Broncos to win the AFC West and go to the playoffs. The question is, will it be good enough to get them a bye. Time will tell, of course. Maybe 11-5 is a tad pessimistic considering how good the Broncos are, but to call their schedule the “easiest” seems like a bit of a reach.
