Packers have 15th toughest strength of schedule in 2020
The Packers have the 15th toughest strength of schedule in 2020.
Take one look through the Green Bay Packers‘ regular season schedule and it looks challenging. Especially when you look at the lineup of road games.
The Packers will take on the San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, all on the road.
But when you look at the Packers’ strength of schedule for 2020, it’s not so bad.
Packers’ strength of schedule about middle of the pack
John Breech of CBS Sports put together a table with each team’s strength of schedule in 2020. The Packers will be pleased to see their name not among the toughest, but it’s also not one of the easiest.
Instead, the Packers’ strength of schedule is right near the middle at 15th. Their opponents went a combined 128-126-2 in 2019. So think an average NFL team. Let’s call them the Chicago Bears.
Strength of schedule is a useful tool, but it doesn’t paint the full picture. It’s entirely based on last season’s records. If the strength of schedule was entirely accurate, the same teams would always get similar records.
Of course, last year’s strength of schedule would’ve viewed the San Francisco 49ers as an easy matchup as they only won four games in 2018. But teams that faced the 49ers, including the Packers, quickly learned that this wasn’t the same team as the season prior.
Similarly, the Los Angeles Chargers and Los Angeles Rams each won double-digit games in 2018 but both failed to make the playoffs last year.
Given how much changes in the NFL year to year, strength of schedule will never be a perfect tool. But it can provide some insight. For example, if your team is set to face the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs, Saints, and 49ers all in the same season (impossible based on NFL scheduling, but just an example), the strength of schedule would be one of the toughest. And for good reason. Few teams in the league could go 3-1 or 4-0 in that stretch.
So, what can we take away? The Packers’ schedule does feature some daunting matchups, but there are also lots of “winnable” games that should balance things out.