In no sport does the power structure fluctuate more from year to year than professional football.
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You don't have to look any further than the Giants' division this past year when the Philadelphia Eagles did exactly that. They won four games in 2012 and went on to capture the NFC East title in 2013.
So when you talk about strength of schedule based on the previous year's records, you have to take it with a grain of salt. However, it's still a way to size up the competition as teams plan all offseason to face said opponents.
And according to the researchers at ESPN.com, the Giants have the sixth-easiest schedule in 2014. Based on their 2013 records, Big Blue's foes (see below) have a winning percentage of .465.
Take a look at the list for all 32 teams:
Rank | Team | Opponent Win Pct. |
1 | Oakland Raiders | 0.578 |
2 | Denver Broncos | 0.570 |
3 | St. Louis Rams | 0.564 |
4 | San Diego Chargers | 0.563 |
4 | San Francisco 49ers | 0.563 |
6 | Seattle Seahawks | 0.561 |
7 | Kansas City Chiefs | 0.559 |
8 | Arizona Cardinals | 0.547 |
9 | New York Jets | 0.520 |
10 | New England Patriots | 0.516 |
11 | Atlanta Falcons | 0.512 |
12 | Miami Dolphins | 0.508 |
13 | Green Bay Packers | 0.504 |
14 | Buffalo Bills | 0.500 |
15 | Chicago Bears | 0.496 |
16 | Detroit Lions | 0.492 |
17 | Washington Redskins | 0.490 |
18 | Dallas Cowboys | 0.488 |
19 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 0.484 |
20 | Philadelphia Eagles | 0.479 |
21 | Minnesota Vikings | 0.477 |
22 | Carolina Panthers | 0.473 |
23 | Cincinnati Bengals | 0.469 |
23 | New Orleans Saints | 0.469 |
23 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 0.469 |
26 | Cleveland Browns | 0.465 |
26 | New York Giants | 0.465 |
28 | Baltimore Ravens | 0.461 |
29 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 0.453 |
30 | Houston Texans | 0.441 |
31 | Tennessee Titans | 0.438 |
32 | Indianapolis Colts | 0.430 |
**2014 Regular Season Opponents** | |
**Home** | **Away** |
Arizona Cardinals | St. Louis Rams |
San Francisco 49ers | Seattle Seahawks |
Houston Texans | Jacksonville Jaguars |
Indianapolis Colts | Tennessee Titans |
Atlanta Falcons (NFC South 3rd Place) | Detroit Lions (NFC North 3rd Place) |
Washington Redskins (Div.) | Washington Redskins (Div.) |
Dallas Cowboys (Div.) | Dallas Cowboys (Div.) |
Philadelphia Eagles (Div.) | Philadelphia Eagles (Div.) |