The Patriots 2010 Schedule.....Sadistically Unfair?

[jmt57]

Granted....but let me ask you this...have you ever lived out of a suitcase? I did for a year...and it was awful. Some hotels are fine..others, terrible. Bad, food, bad sleep....and the worst part: waking up and not knowing where or what city your in. It took a toll on me...and I wasn't playing a violent sport every 6 or 7 days.

As for two games in five days / three games in twelve days, the same is going to hold true for most if not all teams that play on a Thursday. There's what, about nine NFL Thursday games over the course of a season? So about half the league has to deal with the same thing - and then also gets the benefit of extra time to rest and prepare for the next game.

Your right...but what is the winning percentage for teams that have 2 road games in 12 days?

Maybe you can't see what the big deal is....but why then, are the Patriots the ONLY team in the NFL with a schedule like this?

The main point of my initial response was that with the exception of the two teams playing on Thursday in week one, every team that plays on a Thursday during the NFL season has the same hardship of two games in five days and three in twelve days. In other words, many other teams have to go through the same ordeal.

The other point I was making is that if you have more back to back home games, then you are also going to have more back to back away games. In other words, I don't see the benefit of having more consecutive home games.

As for two road games in twelve days, at least it is not back to back (i.e., two road games in five days.) I'm confident playing two road games in twelve days has happened more than once since the NFL started playing on Thursdays.

Regarding your travel experiences, how many nights a week were you on the road? Remember the Pats and other NFL teams are only spending one night a week in a hotel when they travel. And though it may not be home cooking, I'm guessing that their dining menu is usually pretty good.

If you ask me what I would like to see avoided by the schedule maker for any NFL team it would be the following:

• No three consecutive road games
• No road game following a MNF game
• If possible no road game following a SNF game
• No road game preceding a Thursday road game
• If possible no road game preceding any Thursday game

You could add two road games in twelve days to that list too, but those others listed above would be more of a priority, in my opinion.

 

[FloridaPatsFan]

The main point of my initial response was that with the exception of the two teams playing on Thursday in week one, every team that plays on a Thursday during the NFL season has the same hardship of two games in five days and three in twelve days. In other words, many other teams have to go through the same ordeal.

The other point I was making is that if you have more back to back home games, then you are also going to have more back to back away games. In other words, I don't see the benefit of having more consecutive home games.

As for two road games in twelve days, at least it is not back to back (i.e., two road games in five days.) I'm confident playing two road games in twelve days has happened more than once since the NFL started playing on Thursdays.

Regarding your travel experiences, how many nights a week were you on the road? Remember the Pats and other NFL teams are only spending one night a week in a hotel when they travel. And though it may not be home cooking, I'm guessing that their dining menu is usually pretty good.

If you ask me what I would like to see avoided by the schedule maker for any NFL team it would be the following:

• No three consecutive road games
• No road game following a MNF game
• If possible no road game following a SNF game
• No road game preceding a Thursday road game
• If possible no road game preceding any Thursday game

You could add two road games in twelve days to that list too, but those others listed above would be more of a priority, in my opinion.

Thanks for not replying without negativity...your objectivity is appreciated...

The point of discussion is more Why no home games consecutively? more than Who we play. But on the subject of who we play....unquestionably, we have a tough schedule.

I feel that regardless of who is on the schedule...there are subjective calls made on behalf of the NFL that have not been favorable to the Patriots. If you take into consideration Indianapolis's schedule (annualy), you would notice that they play very few games in climates that are considered extreme...Which (as we all know) completely favors them.

I'm just trying to understand why EVERY team in the NFL has multiple home games consecutively and the Patriots do not....

 

[Nikolai]

I don't see a lot of unfairness for the reasons already mentioned, but I think we can all agree that after wrapping up the Bengals and Bills@home, the schedule became a lot more difficult.

[This may be a subject for another thread; maybe in the offseason] I don't know if the NFL is shooting for parity with the scheduling, but I've actually wondered if having the top teams in each division play other conference division winners is always the best ticket to preserve parity. While the Pats routinely have to play the Colts, Steelers, and Chargers, I could make an argument that facing such top competition every year creates stronger teams that strive to improve in order to beat extra-divisional rivals. Meanwhile, Buffalo faces off against the likes of Cleveland, Jax, and Oakland every year. In any event, that's where I thought this thread was headed when I read the title.[/hijack]

 

[Deus Irae]

Thanks for not replying without negativity...your objectivity is appreciated...

The point of discussion is more Why no home games consecutively? more than Who we play. But on the subject of who we play....unquestionably, we have a tough schedule.

I feel that regardless of who is on the schedule...there are subjective calls made on behalf of the NFL that have not been favorable to the Patriots. If you take into consideration Indianapolis's schedule (annualy), you would notice that they play very few games in climates that are considered extreme...Which (as we all know) completely favors them.

I'm just trying to understand why EVERY team in the NFL has multiple home games consecutively and the Patriots do not....

New England is home to start and end the season. The rest of the year, save one instance, is home/away/home/away. They also got a bye week before a home game, meaning they could take advantage of that full week without having to worry about travel at the back end. That's about the best schedule you can ask for, especially since neither game of the away pairing was a particularly long trip.

 

[hallfamebrady]

The scheduling is a lot more fair today vs. pre - 2002. Before the 2002 season, eeach team played their division had eight games agianst division rivals, a NFC division minus one for four games, and four AFC opponents based on the standings from the previous year. The first place team played primarily first and second place teams while the bottom of the division played primarily last place teams in the four conference non division games.

Since 2002, each team in a division has 14 of their 16 games in common and each team knows their opponents years in advance. The Jets and the Pats actually play identical schedules in terms of home and away games minus the two AFC non division games based on the previous years standings every year. The Bills and the Fins play the same teams except with opposite home / away games.

Two potential conflicts are on the horizon redo the scheduling formula. First, the additional two games in a 18 game schedule will be based on the previous years standings. Second, the NFL might add a 33rd team for the LA market.

 

[jmt57]

Thanks for not replying without negativity...your objectivity is appreciated...

The point of discussion is more Why no home games consecutively? more than Who we play. But on the subject of who we play....unquestionably, we have a tough schedule.

I feel that regardless of who is on the schedule...there are subjective calls made on behalf of the NFL that have not been favorable to the Patriots. If you take into consideration Indianapolis's schedule (annualy), you would notice that they play very few games in climates that are considered extreme...Which (as we all know) completely favors them.

I'm just trying to understand why EVERY team in the NFL has multiple home games consecutively and the Patriots do not....

I don't know, good question. Perhaps it is just an anomaly. Or perhaps the Pats themselves requested to limit back-to-back home games and back-to-back road games?

Teams are able to place schedule requests and the NFL tries to accommodate. A couple years ago when the Pats had four games on the west coast they requested those games be played consecutively (two pair of back-to-back west coat games), so they could stay out west and have only two long trips rather than four. This year Miami asked if the could avoid day home games early in the season so their fans could be more comfortable, avoiding the heat and humidity. Every year the Giants and Jets request to avoid day home games early (week one and two) in order to avoid a conflict with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.


As for Indy, they get the benefit of playing in the AFC South. So every year they are going to get road games in Jacksonville, Houston and Tennessee. That's why they have more warm weather games than the Pats (or Jets, or Steelers) do. The NFL has a specific schedule rotation so it is not as if somebody is arbitrarily lining up warm weather cities for Indy to play in.

You could make the argument that the Colts and Dolphins should switch divisions, but at the time that was not done in order to preserve the old AFL East rivalries Miami had. Actually if you wanted to properly realign you could put the Ravens in the AFCE, Indy in the AFCN and Miami in the AFCS but at this point I would be very surprised to see that happen. Rivalries trumped geography (see Dallas in NFCE.)

 

[FloridaPatsFan]

I don't know, good question. Perhaps it is just an anomaly. Or perhaps the Pats themselves requested to limit back-to-back home games and back-to-back road games?

Teams are able to place schedule requests and the NFL tries to accommodate. A couple years ago when the Pats had four games on the west coast they requested those games be played consecutively (two pair of back-to-back west coat games), so they could stay out west and have only two long trips rather than four. This year Miami asked if the could avoid day home games early in the season so their fans could be more comfortable. The Giants and Jets request to avoid day home games early (week one and two?) in order to avoid a conflict with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.


As for Indy, they get the benefit of playing in the AFC South. So every year they are going to get road games in Jacksonville, Houston and Tennessee. That's why they have more warm weather games than the Pats (or Jets, or Steelers) do. The NFL has a specific schedule rotation so it is not as if somebody is arbitrarily lining up warm weather cities for Indy to play in.

You could make the argument that the Colts and Dolphins should switch divisions, but at the time that was not done in order to preserve the old AFL East rivalries Miami had. Actually if you wanted to properly realign you could put the Ravens in the AFCE, Indy in the AFCN and Miami in the AFCS but at this point I would be very surprised to see that happen. Rivalries trumped geography (see Dallas in NFCE.)

Nice post...

The NFL could choose to send Indianapolis to Houston and Jacksonville in September when its about 110 degrees more and Tennessee in late December more often....but seldom do.

In regards to the current alignment....agree that it would be difficult to change.

As for the scheduling of home/away/home/away for the entire season, I have tried to think of positives/negatives to this type of scheduling. But I keep coming back to one thought...and that is, having consecutive home games is a chance to recharge the batteries. Sleep in your own bed. Get into a routine and build some momentum to head out onto the road....where even good teams usually only win half the time. Taking the aformentioned away, and I cannot buy that this schedule is any way positive.

 

[Deus Irae]

Nice post...

The NFL could choose to send Indianapolis to Houston and Jacksonville in September when its about 110 degrees more and Tennessee in late December more often....but seldom do.

In regards to the current alignment....agree that it would be difficult to change.

As for the scheduling of home/away/home/away for the entire season, I have tried to think of positives/negatives to this type of scheduling. But I keep coming back to one thought...and that is, having consecutive home games is a chance to recharge the batteries. Sleep in your own bed. Get into a routine and build some momentum to head out onto the road....where even good teams usually only win half the time. Taking the aformentioned away, and I cannot buy that this schedule is any way positive.

You are only away from your family every other weekend, instead of multiple weekends in a row. It's almost an ideal schedule.

 

[ATippett56]

Consider these facts..

The Patriots do not have consecutive home games, and a reprieve from the wear and tear of travel for THE ENTIRE SEASON.

Yet, the Patriots do not play three consecutive games on the road this season.

This may not seem like a big deal....but knowing that you'll never spend more than 10 days at home for the next 5 months will undoubtedly take its toll on you physically....and mentally.

It's not a big deal since the New England Patriots typically travel on a Saturday afternoon prior to a Sunday game. Meanwhile, the New England Patriots players are back in the Foxboro, MA area from Monday thru Friday.

In all my years of following the NFL....I've never heard of anything like it.

Is there some kind of conspiracy you have uncovered?

They made the Patriots play 3 games in a span of 12 days....knowing full well that the average NFL player can barely recover from 1 game for a week without filling his body with painkillers. Oh, and those 3 games? Pittsburgh and Indy back to back.....Wow.

The Saints, Cowboys, Jets, Bengals, and Lions also play 3 games in a span of 12 days. What about other teams that play Thursday night football this season?

 

[everlong]

Vs teams with winning records in regular season

2010 3-1
2007 7-0
2004 7-1
2003 7-0

If Miami and SD can pick up wins they could move to 5-1. They still have Chicago, GB and the Jets. If they win those games and all these teams finish above .500 the 8-1 mark would rank right up there with the other SB seasons. Still a lot to be determined but it's been a difficult schedule and that's with some expected good teams that still have talent sucking.

 

[FloridaPatsFan]

Yet, the Patriots do not play three consecutive games on the road this season.

It's not a big deal since the New England Patriots typically travel on a Saturday afternoon prior to a Sunday game. Meanwhile, the New England Patriots players are back in the Foxboro, MA area from Monday thru Friday.

Is there some kind of conspiracy you have uncovered?

The Saints, Cowboys, Jets, Bengals, and Lions also play 3 games in a span of 12 days. What about other teams that play Thursday night football this season?

And yet, neither does 95% of the teams in the NFL....Of the 1 or 2 that did...are rewarded with multiple consecutive home games. Again, a chance to recharge and build momentum.....

I see this kind of schedule anywhere from at best neutral, to worst, negative. but in no way, a favorable schedule.

I would gladly submit this to Reiss with hopes that he would answer it....at the very least, its a good question.[/B

 

[PatsFanSince74]

I realize with the Patriots at 9-2 and tied for first in the NFL...we shouldn't have much to complain about....But this group of Patriots might be the toughest team...Physically and mentally I have ever seen.


I keep going over and over the schedule and tried to make sense of what appears to be the most lopsided and unfair schedule I have seen an NFL team get in years, maybe ever.

Consider these facts..

The Patriots do not have consecutive home games, and a reprieve from the wear and tear of travel for THE ENTIRE SEASON.

EVERY team in the NFL has consecutive home games at least 1, many times 2 and sometimes 3 times EXCEPT the Patriots.

MANY teams in the NFL have a stretch of 3 games in a row at home....EXCEPT the Patriots.

This may not seem like a big deal....but knowing that you'll never spend more than 10 days at home for the next 5 months will undoubtedly take its toll on you physically....and mentally.

In all my years of following the NFL....I've never heard of anything like it.

They made the Patriots play 3 games in a span of 12 days....knowing full well that the average NFL player can barely recover from 1 game for a week without filling his body with painkillers. Oh, and those 3 games? Pittsburgh and Indy back to back.....Wow.

Now we get the Jets at home Monday, Chicago bears on short rest Sunday and turn around and play the Packers a week later.

2007 may have been the "F YOU" to the NFL....But 2010 is the NFL "F YOU" to the Patriots....

I think you're off base and that we have plenty of other things to feel disrespected over than this.

It's also a matter of perspective; when the schedule came out and I saw that they didn't have back to back road games, I remember thinking how lucky I thought they were! And the arithmetic says that two or three games in a row at home mean two or three games in a row on the road.

As someone who has logged way over a million air miles all over the planet, I can say that you learn to get into a rhythm when you travel.

And, these guys are young and not exactly standing in long lines with their shoes off or fighting for space in the overhead bin. They're taken door to door to a plane that is configured for their needs, they are taken directly from the plane to their hotel and don't stand in a check-in line.

I'm not saying it isn't demanding and I understand that time away from family is tough for anyone, but every effort is made to mitigate any hardship and they are well-compensated for the inconvenience.

And, it's not just time at home or away from home, but the distances you travel that can wear on you as well. This is clearly a matter of geography (where a team is located) and schedule (are they playing a West Division cycle this year?) I got curious and looked it up.

The Pats will travel a total of 13,590 miles this season.

The Average NFL team will travel 14,346.9 miles; the median is 13,310. So the Pats are in the middle of the pack when it comes to hours in the air and a little luckier this year than the average team (for true conspiracy-theorists, Indy will travel 13,264 miles this year).

SanFran will book the most miles at 33,264; Cincinnati the least at 5,992.

Six teams will travel over 20,000 miles; nine will travel less than 10,000.

In other words, compared with what frequent flying business people endure, they don't have it too bad; no one in their corporate travel department is telling them they have to connect through O'Hare to save $100 or that they have to stay over Friday night to get the special Saturday fare.

As for three games in twelve days, that happens to every team that plays on a Thursday, which is about half the teams in the league this year.

 

[ATippett56]

And yet, neither does 95% of the teams in the NFL....Of the 1 or 2 that did...are rewarded with multiple consecutive home games. Again, a chance to recharge and build momentum.....

I see this kind of schedule anywhere from at best neutral, to worst, negative. but in no way, a favorable schedule.[/B

Non sequitur. I don't see how this has any bearing on the Cleveland Browns loss nor the New York Jets loss earlier this season.

 

[FloridaPatsFan]

Non sequitur. I don't see how this has any bearing on the Cleveland Browns loss nor the New York Jets loss earlier this season.

You missed the point.

 

[Kid~Brady]

Either way, we've had a very tough schedule this year and we've done much better than expected. people were complaining about the Pitt and Indy stretch back to back.... what happened? We beat both teams then went on the road a couple days later and demolished another team.

 

[Ring 6]

I think you're off base and that we have plenty of other things to feel disrespected over than this.

It's also a matter of perspective; when the schedule came out and I saw that they didn't have back to back road games, I remember thinking how lucky I thought they were! And the arithmetic says that two or three games in a row at home mean two or three games in a row on the road.

As someone who has logged way over a million air miles all over the planet, I can say that you learn to get into a rhythm when you travel.

And, these guys are young and not exactly standing in long lines with their shoes off or fighting for space in the overhead bin. They're taken door to door to a plane that is configured for their needs, they are taken directly from the plane to their hotel and don't stand in a check-in line.

I'm not saying it isn't demanding and I understand that time away from family is tough for anyone, but every effort is made to mitigate any hardship and they are well-compensated for the inconvenience.

And, it's not just time at home or away from home, but the distances you travel that can wear on you as well. This is clearly a matter of geography (where a team is located) and schedule (are they playing a West Division cycle this year?) I got curious and looked it up.

The Pats will travel a total of 13,590 miles this season.

The Average NFL team will travel 14,346.9 miles; the median is 13,310. So the Pats are in the middle of the pack when it comes to hours in the air and a little luckier this year than the average team (for true conspiracy-theorists, Indy will travel 13,264 miles this year).

SanFran will book the most miles at 33,264; Cincinnati the least at 5,992.

Six teams will travel over 20,000 miles; nine will travel less than 10,000.

In other words, compared with what frequent flying business people endure, they don't have it too bad; no one in their corporate travel department is telling them they have to connect through O'Hare to save $100 or that they have to stay over Friday night to get the special Saturday fare.

As for three games in twelve days, that happens to every team that plays on a Thursday, which is about half the teams in the league this year.

By the way, if you asked Bob Kraft if he would like the Thanksgiving Day game, he would say yes.
I think the amount of back to back home and road games is insignificant.

 

[FloridaPatsFan]

I think you're off base and that we have plenty of other things to feel disrespected over than this.

It's also a matter of perspective; when the schedule came out and I saw that they didn't have back to back road games, I remember thinking how lucky I thought they were! And the arithmetic says that two or three games in a row at home mean two or three games in a row on the road.

As someone who has logged way over a million air miles all over the planet, I can say that you learn to get into a rhythm when you travel.

And, these guys are young and not exactly standing in long lines with their shoes off or fighting for space in the overhead bin. They're taken door to door to a plane that is configured for their needs, they are taken directly from the plane to their hotel and don't stand in a check-in line.

I'm not saying it isn't demanding and I understand that time away from family is tough for anyone, but every effort is made to mitigate any hardship and they are well-compensated for the inconvenience.

And, it's not just time at home or away from home, but the distances you travel that can wear on you as well. This is clearly a matter of geography (where a team is located) and schedule (are they playing a West Division cycle this year?) I got curious and looked it up.

The Pats will travel a total of 13,590 miles this season.

The Average NFL team will travel 14,346.9 miles; the median is 13,310. So the Pats are in the middle of the pack when it comes to hours in the air and a little luckier this year than the average team (for true conspiracy-theorists, Indy will travel 13,264 miles this year).

SanFran will book the most miles at 33,264; Cincinnati the least at 5,992.

Six teams will travel over 20,000 miles; nine will travel less than 10,000.

In other words, compared with what frequent flying business people endure, they don't have it too bad; no one in their corporate travel department is telling them they have to connect through O'Hare to save $100 or that they have to stay over Friday night to get the special Saturday fare.

As for three games in twelve days, that happens to every team that plays on a Thursday, which is about half the teams in the league this year.

Nice work with the travel statistics....

I never got in rhythm when I had to travel...just got very tired....lol.

And every point is understood in regards to teams that had to play on short rest.....

But did they have to play Pittsburgh AND Indianapolis prior to the thursday game? Physical games that are also very emotionally draining?

I don't think I could be more proud of our guys..despite the schedule....pulling off 3 outstanding wins in that stretch....I don't think any other team has the mental toughness to do what we just did.

 

[borg]

You are only away from your family every other weekend, instead of multiple weekends in a row. It's almost an ideal schedule.

Their schedule is an IDEAL schedule.
Home opener....get momentum
Final game at home.....invaluable if seeding is on the line.
Every other game...home/away, gets you into a routine. My dog likes routine so the Pats must as well
Dog: dinner, vanilla ice cream, treat 1, treat 2, treat 3, water from sink faucet, outside business, retire to king bed, rawhide chew, king down pillow positioned 4 inches from wife's head

 

[ATippett56]

You missed the point.

The New England Patriots are 9-2 with a home game against the New York Jets following a Thanksgiving day game. Yet, you are complaining about the New England Patriots schedule.

 

[alamo]

Until this thread I had been thinking that the Pats scheduling was quite fair.
And I have not changed my opinion.

As to the wear and tear of travel -- some people are fine with it and actually prefer it to a point. A lot of it is how you deal with it and whether you have the ability (due to your employer and your customers) to make the small changes to suit your own schedule.

I have travelled extensively, though usually just one city a week. But add it all up and I am a Delta Million Miler. So I do know some of what I am talking about.