Dallas Cowboys: Week 13 @ Baltimore Ravens
The Dallas Cowboys are coming off a solid offseason, given the moves they made in free agency and a draft that many consider to be one of the best league-wide. Adding wide receiver CeeDee Lamb to a talented group of pass catchers must make Dak Prescott a happy man, although the Cowboys’ QB will be happier if he and the team can work out a long-term deal.
Schedule-wise, the Cowboys have some interesting games on the calendar this season. Their traditional Thanksgiving Day game is a rivalry outing, as they host the Washington Redskins. They’ll get a trip to Minnesota to take on the Vikings, but that comes after their bye week. The week before their bye they’ll host the Pittsburgh Steelers, in a game that will remind many of their meetings in various Super Bowls.
One game that stands out is what awaits them after Thanksgiving. After hosting Washington on that Thursday they’ll travel to the mid-Atlantic to visit the Baltimore Ravens the following Thursday night. The schematic matchup between the Ravens’ offense and the Cowboys’ defense – particularly their linebackers – will certainly be worth watching.
Denver Broncos: Week 5 @ New England Patriots
Much like their fellow AFC West rivals, the Denver Broncos immediately being with two difficult games on their schedule, having to face the Kansas City Chiefs twice over the course of the season. The second of the two meetings is a Sunday night tilt at Arrowhead Stadium, which will certainly be a difficult test for second-year quarterback Drew Lock and company.
They also face a difficult stretch at the beginning of October. They christen the month with a Thursday night game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on October 1sth. Then on Sunday, October 11th the Broncos face the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Whether they decide to stay on the East Coast, or make back-to-back trips to the northeast, remains to be seen. But that trip to Gillette to take on the Patriots is their toughest game outside of the division.
Detroit Lions: Week 16 @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Detroit Lions face a challenging schedule in the year ahead, despite their poor finish to the previous campaign. They enjoy an early bye week, which comes all the way in Week 5, so they finish their season with 12-straight games, where their only break of sorts will be after their traditional Thanksgiving tilt against the Houston Texans.
That means the games at the end of their schedule will be difficult tests. One of the games on the back half of their season? A Week 16 contest against the Tampa Bay Buccaneeers. Having Tom Brady and what we expect to be a high-flying offense come to town at the end of the year, coming off ten-straight games, will be a difficult challenge.
Green Bay Packers: Week 9 @ San Francisco 49ers
Last season, Levi’s Stadium was a house of horrors for the Green Bay Packers. Despite losing just four games a year ago – counting the playoffs – half of those losses occurred on the road against the San Francisco 49ers. Coming off their bye week, the Packers traveled to the West Coast last year for a Sunday night affair against San Francisco, and were promptly blown out, 37-8.
Then they ventured to Levi’s Stadium for the NFC Championship Game, and their luck did not improve. While they managed to score 20 points in that contest, they still gave up 37 to the 49ers, who moved on to the Super Bowl
Hopefully the third time is a charm, as the Packers travel to Levi’s Stadium again this season, for a Week 9 contest. Making things worse is that the game falls on a Thursday night, just a few days after the Packers will have hosted their NFC North rivals the Minnesota Vikings. That makes for tough sledding given the date, and the recent history.
Houston Texans: Week 1 @ Kansas City Chiefs
That’s right friends, we have a new Bill O’Brien photo to use…
Having the honor of paying on the opening night of the NFL season is usually a tremendous opportunity. Unless you are the visiting team. If you are making the road trip to kick off a new season, it usually means your opponent is going to be raising a banner in front of a celebrating, raucous crowd.
That is exactly what the Houston Texans face in Week 1, when they help usher in a new season by facing the Kansas City Chiefs on the opening night of the new year. Arrowhead Stadium will be rocking as they honor Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the 2019-2020 Super Bowl Champions. You can expect to see many reminders of the lead the Texans blew in the Divisional Round a season ago on the video boards in the pregame ceremony as well. In all, a tough way to start the season.
Indianapolis Colts: Week 10 @ Tennessee Titans
New quarterback, and hopefully a new outlook for the year ahead. After making a run to the playoffs two years ago, the Indianapolis Colts struggled in 2019. That was perhaps due in large part to the surprising retirement of quarterback Andrew Luck. Jacoby Brissett struggled under center for the Colts, leading the organization to turn to free agent Philip Rivers.
In the year ahead, the Colts will face teams from the NFC North in their non-conference games, but they also face a difficult test in early November. They host the defending AFC North Champion Baltimore Ravens for an early afternoon tilt on Sunday, November 8th, but then a few days later they travel to Tennessee to take on the Titans on Thursday night. That is going to be a difficult test, especially coming off of short rest and a game against the Ravens that we can expect to be a bruising affair.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Week 15 @ Baltimore Ravens
Are they rebuilding? Are they “Tanking for Trevor?” Only time will tell, but the Jacksonville Jaguars had a solid draft and seem to be building – at least for the 2020 season – around second-year quarterback Gardner Minshew. The former Washington State passer performed well at times when pressed into action to replace an injured Nick Foles. So much so, the team was willing to deal Foles to the Chicago Bears.
That might make for an interesting reunion in Week 16, when the Bears come to town to take on the Jaguars. But that meeting is not the toughest test for the Jaguars this season. That actually comes in Week 15, when they make the trip to Baltimore to take on the Ravens. Not only will they have to deal with Lamar Jackson and pals, but a game at this point in the season is sure to have serious playoff implications. A difficult combination for Jacksonville to deal with.
Kansas City Chiefs: Week 15 @ New Orleans Saints
The Kansas City Chiefs face a number of difficult tests in the year ahead as they look to be the first team since the 2003-2004 New England Patriots to repeat as Super Bowl Champions. In fact, those very Patriots are one of the tests they will face, as Bill Belichick and the gang come to Arrowhead Stadium for a Week 4 showdown. That comes right after the Chiefs travel to Baltimore for a Week 3 clash against the Ravens on Monday Night Football.
But quietly – or anything but as the case may be – the toughest game on their slate might be a Week 15 meeting with the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes Benz Superdome. Both teams should be fighting for playoff positioning, making it a critical game late in the season in an ear-splitting environment. Sure, the Chiefs have some tough challenges in the AFC alone, but this game looms large.