Inside The Bills

Half of Bills division games vs. rested foes

Posted by Chris Brown on June 19, 2013 – 9:30 am

As we profiled on Buffalobills.com Wednesday, Buffalo and Atlanta are the only two clubs with four or more games against opponents coming off of extra rest the week before. The Bills and Falcons also hold the dubious distinction of another scheduling disadvantage.

Buffalo and Atlanta are also the only two teams that have two or more of their division games among those in which they face an opponent off extra rest. Here’s how it lays out.

Teams who face three division opponents off extra rest
Buffalo – NYJ twice, Miami

Teams who face two division opponents off extra rest
Atlanta – Tampa, Carolina

There is no other club in the league that faces more than one opponent off extra rest that is a division rival. Knowing these games count double and are instrumental to playoff aspiration, knowing a division title gives a team an automatic postseason bid, the league should regulate and prohibit division games from being scheduled on a week following an extended layoff by one of those division clubs via a bye week or Thursday night game the week prior.

Buffalo experienced that first hand on back-to-back weeks in 2012. After playing New England following a bye week for the Patriots on the road, Buffalo had to turn around and play another division opponent off four days rest on the following Thursday night. It has to change.

Tags: 2013 schedule, bye weeks, Thursday night football
Posted in Inside the Bills