The first four weeks of the 2020 season might have the Green Bay Packers face all four teams in the AFC South.
John Clayton of 710 ESPN in Seattle confirmed to USA TODAY Sports Media Group that the NFL has discussed having all teams begin the season with four out-of-conference games as a scheduling precaution in case the league has to delay the start of the year due to the coronavirus pandemic. The four games each team plays against the other conference – for instance, the Packers play the AFC South in 2020 – are considered the least important in terms of determining division winners and playoff standings.
The NFL is scheduled to release the entire schedule on Thursday night.
The Packers are scheduled to host the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans and travel to the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts in 2020. If Clayton is correct, Matt LaFleur’s team would face some combination of those four games to start the 2020 season.
Last season, the Texans and Titans both made the playoffs – the Texans at 10-6 as division winners and the Titans at 9-7 as a wildcard team. The Texans and Titans both lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs during the postseason.
The Packers haven’t faced the AFC South since the 2016 season. They beat the Jaguars on the road and the Texans at home but lost to the Titans on the road and Colts at home.
[vertical-gallery id=40152]