Tag: 2021 nfl schedule

How long will it take for the Houston Texans to be attractive to national TV audiences?

The Houston Texans are devoid of star power and on-field success. When will they appear on nationally-televised broadcasts again?

The NFL schedule release is set for May 12 at 7:00 p.m Central Time, but Houston sports fans wouldn’t be surprised to see their Texans play in the early game slot on Sunday for 17 weeks.

The Texans had one prime time game in 2020, the Thursday NFL kickoff at Arrowhead Stadium against the Kansas City Chiefs. Houston technically had another nationally televised game against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving at Ford Field, but their other 14 games were on Sunday afternoons.

That was with quarterback Deshaun Watson and defensive end J.J. Watt. One is with the Arizona Cardinals now, and the other is a mere technicality on the roster. Neither will be part of the star power of the 2021 team, if it even has any. Throw in the fact the Texans went 4-12 a season ago and that they play in the AFC South, and there isn’t much hope for Houston to even get an NFL Network game in late December.

Take for example this list of top-10 games for the 2021 season on NFL.com. The Jacksonville Jaguars are listed twice, once as an actual game on the list and another time as part of an honorable mention. Naturally Houston isn’t on there, but neither are other AFC South foes such as the Tennessee Titans or Indianapolis Colts.

Therefore, it isn’t even a guarantee that playing two playoff teams from a year ago twice will ensure Houston plays in front of a national TV audience.

The Texans’ five-man draft class also did not net any rookies that sports fans would want to watch. As much as fifth-round tight end Brevin Jordan was a steal, the Texans don’t have the same cache as they did two years ago when Watson, Watt, and three-time All-Pro wideout DeAndre Hopkins were on the roster. As great teammates as safety Justin Reid, receiver Brandin Cooks, and running back David Johnson are, they don’t exactly move the needle for TV executives.

Of course, winning ballgames would help the Texans catapult into front of national TV audiences. But how long could that take? The most optimistic outlook would have to be 2022 when general manager Nick Caserio has retooled the roster and had the benefit of a first and second-round pick in the NFL draft. As much as it could technically happen, the Texans aren’t going to jump out to a 10-0 start and force a flex into Sunday Night Football in Week 11.

The Texans may be just a Houston thing for quite a while.

ESPN ranks Bills strength of schedule among the easiest in NFL, AFC East

ESPN on Buffalo Bills’ 2021 schedule strength of schedule being among NFL’s easiest.

The Bills had their most successful season this century in 2020. Buffalo will hope for a repeat effort.

In doing so… could that accomplishment even be, easier?

According to ESPN’s Mike Clay… yes.

Using a projection based on current rosters in the NFL, the analyst released strength of schedule numbers on Tuesday. In them, the entire AFC East fares well… but none better than the Bills.

The entire division slots in between third and sixth, but Buffalo holds that best spot. The Bills have the third-easiest schedule in 2021, per the report:

In going 13-3 last season and winning the AFC East for the first time in 25 years, the Bills did so with a bit of a daunting workload in 2020. One preseason projection from last year had the Bills with the fifth-hardest slate. Still, they managed to win the AFC east crown.

Looking ahead in this projection, that same thing is put into emphasis once again, the AFC East. Considering the Patriots, Jets and Dolphins are all projected to have easy slates as well, winning divisional matchups in 2021 could be make-or-break.

Last year, the Bills swept the division.

Currently this prediction by ESPN does include a randomized game-by-game schedule. On May 12, the NFL will officially release final schedules for next season, however, we do already know each team’s upcoming opponents, just not the order in which they’ll appear.

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2021 Steelers schedule to be released May 12

Soon Steelers fans will know exact dates of when Pittsburgh will be taking on its home and away opponents.

After the excitement of the NFL draft wears off, the next big event for Steelers fans is schedule release day.

We’ve known for a couple of years now who most of the Steelers 2021 home and away opponents would be, but soon we’ll know exact dates.

The Steelers will face the AFC West and NFC North this coming season, which includes home games against the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders and away games against the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs.

Since the Steelers finished first in the AFC North, they’ll also face the same-place finisher in the AFC East (Buffalo Bills) and AFC South (Tennessee Titans).

The NFL announced on Wednesday that the 2021 schedule will be released on Wednesday, May 12 at 8 p.m.

The National Football League announced today that the 2021 NFL Schedule powered by AWS will be released on NFL Network, NFL.com and the NFL app on Wednesday, May 12 at 8:00 PM ET.

NFL Network’s coverage will be highlighted by Schedule Release ’21 Presented by Verizon which breaks down the 2021 NFL regular season schedule, division-by-division, analyzing the top matchups and primetime games.

Live streaming of NFL Network is available across multiple devices (smartphone, PC, tablet and connected TVs) through the NFL app or NFL.com/watch for subscribers of participating NFL Network providers.

NFL.com and the NFL app will provide complete team-by-team and weekly schedules of all regular season games, listing opponents, sites and times.

The 2021 season is being billed as the biggest in NFL history. And it will be… for a while at least. The league announced in March that it would be adding a 17th game starting with 2021. The 17th game for the Steelers will be the Seattle Seahawks. Reports indicate that the AFC will host the additional games; if accurate, Pittsburgh will play host to Seattle.

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2021 NFL schedule set to be released on May 12

Adam Schefter is reporting that the Eagles 17 game NFL schedule for 2021 will be released on May 12

As well await the NFL draft in eight days, we now have an idea on the 2021 NFL schedule, as Adam Schefter is reporting that the league has set a date of May 12, for fans and the media.

The league just confirmed the announcement moments ago.

The National Football League announced today that the 2021 NFL Schedule powered by AWS will be released on NFL Network, NFL.com and the NFL app on Wednesday, May 12 at 8:00 PM ET.

NFL Network’s coverage will be highlighted by Schedule Release ’21 Presented by Verizon which breaks down the 2021 NFL regular season schedule, division-by-division, analyzing the top matchups and primetime games.

Live streaming of NFL Network is available across multiple devices (smartphone, PC, tablet and connected TVs) through the NFL app or NFL.com/watch for subscribers of participating NFL Network providers.

NFL.com and the NFL app will provide complete team-by-team and weekly schedules of all regular season games, listing opponents, sites and times.

The Eagles will face the NFC South and AFC West, meaning Philadelphia’s rebuilt defense will face Tom Brady, Taysom Hill or Drew Brews, Patrick Mahomes, and Chargers rookie sensation, Justin Herbert among others.

The Eagles will play their six NFC East games along with the 49ers and Lions as well as a familiar face in Joe Douglas and the New York Jets.

Philadelphia’s projected win total was revealed by BetMGM recently and now we’ve highlighted the projected win total for their 14 opponents.

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Vikings have the fifth-toughest schedule in terms of opponents’ 2020 winning percentage

The Minnesota Vikings have a tough schedule for the 2021 NFL season.

The Vikings retooled their defense this offseason and now the team will have to vie for a postseason berth after missing out on the playoffs in 2020.

To do so, Minnesota has a hard road ahead. According to eatdrinkandsleepfootball.com, the Vikings’ have the fifth-toughest schedule in the NFL next season, in terms of opponents’ winning percentage in 2020 (H/T Michael Rand of the Star Tribune).

That makes sense when you look at the win projections of Minnesota’s opponents in 2021, courtesy of BetMGM.

Granted, win projections can be influenced by a variety of factors, so many teams have more victories than what they’ll actually get in 2021. Still, the fact that so many people seem to think a plethora of the Vikings’ opponents will be competitive is concerning.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Win total projections for all of the Vikings’ opponents in 2021

The Minnesota Vikings will have a difficult schedule for the 2021 NFL season.

Minnesota will have to try for a bounce-back season in 2021.

In 2020, the Vikings did themselves no favors by starting 1-5. In the end, the team showed its resilience to compete for a postseason spot, but ultimately, Minnesota finished 7-9 and missed out on the playoffs.

The Vikings will have to face off against some promising teams in 2021. Minnesota has 17 games, most of which come against teams with at least some chance of being competitive next season.

So here is a win total projection for each of the Vikings’ opponents in 2021, courtesy of BetMGM.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Projected win totals for each of Bills’ 2021 opponents

Buffalo Bills 2021 NFL opponents projected win totals.

Projected win totals for all 32 NFL teams were released late last week. Those opening numbers landed the Bills at a total of 10.5 wins, according to BetMGM.

As it goes, folks in western New York won’t care about that number for all 31 other teams across the league. But there’s some they’ll care about… namely Buffalo’s opponents and certainly those in the AFC East.

With that, let’s get a rundown of the projected win totals for the Bills’ 2021 opponents now:

5 Philadelphia Eagles games that could be played in prime-time this season

Eagles games against the Cowboys, Chiefs, Buccaneers, Giants, and 49ers all could be played in prime-time this season.

The Eagles know their opponents for the 2021 NFL season and per Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal, the dates and times should be released sometime next month.

Typically, the NFL schedule is released prior to the NFL draft, but the COVID-19 pandemic has ensured a late unveil for the second straight year.

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Everything we do know:

:The Eagles will face the NFC South and AFC West, meaning Philadelphia’s rebuilt defense will face Tom Brady, Sam Darnold, Matt Ryan, Taysom Hill or Jameis Winston, Derek Carr, Patrick Mahomes, and Chargers rookie sensation, Justin Herbert among others.

: The Eagles will play their six NFC East games along with the 49ers and Lions as well.

: The NFL is headed toward expanding its regular-season schedule to 17 games in 2021 and that means the Eagles will meet Joe Douglas, head coach Robert Saleh and the New York Jets on the road.

The Eagles will face the Jets since both teams had last-place finishes in their respective divisions last season.

The matchup could give Howie Roseman and the Eagles an up-close look at Zach Wilson after Philadelphia reportedly had an interest in trading up in order to draft the former BYU star.

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The 2020 NFL schedule release show is less than a month away and as fans and analysts start to clamor for the most high-profile games to watch, we’re set to break down five games that have the most potential to be played in prime time.

NFL single-season records that could be broken with a 17-game schedule

The NFL has officially adopted a 17-game schedule. Here are some records that stand to be broken now that an extra game is on the slate.

The NFL has officially adopted a 17-game schedule starting in 2021. The league will borrow from the original four-game preseason and carry over to the regular season.

With the extra regular season game affords an opportunity for some regular season records to be shattered. Here is a look at some records that could be broken now that an extra regular season game has been added to the schedule.

NFL officially adds a 17th game to the schedule as Eagles will face the Jets in 2021

The NFL has added a 17th game to the schedule, removing one preseason game as the Eagles will face the New York Jets in 2021.

The NFL is headed toward expanding its regular-season schedule to 17 games in 2021 and that means the Eagles will meet Joe Douglas, head coach Robert Saleh and the New York Jets on the road.

When the NFL was choosing options, the formula that was adopted featured the AFC versus NFC, cross-conference matchup from two years ago, with the 2021 matchups based on 2020 standings.

The Eagles will face the Jets since both teams had last-place finishes in their respective divisions last season.

The matchup could give Howie Roseman and the Eagles an up-close look at Zach Wilson after Philadelphia reportedly had an interest in trading up in order to draft the former BYU star.

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