Steve Davis: The Pros & Cons Of The Ravens' Schedule
Now that we've had a few days to ponder the Ravens' 2016 schedule, here are a few of my observations.
The league doesn't appear to think the Ravens will be real good. Why? The Ravens only got 2 primetime games. That's the fewest since 2006. The teams got 4 and 5 are the ones that have a lot of cache. The teams that got two or less are the teams that traditionally finish near the bottom of their divisions. I am surprised the NFL only gave the Ravens two (of course, since I wake up at 4 in the morning, I am not crushed).
The Ravens will have a favorable start with only one playoff team in the first seven games and no murderous road trips like last year. If the Ravens are decent, a 5-0 start seems possible. The end of year will be tough, with three of the final four teams having to go to New England, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, but you never know what shape those teams will be in at that point, so it's fair to think that one of those games might not be as difficult as they look right now.
I'd rather have my tough games at the end of the year when I have some mojo going.
