NFL 2023 strength of schedule is the easiest for the Atlanta Falcons and hardest for the Philadelphia Eagles. 49ers strength of schedule is eighteenth easiest.
The Strenght of Schedule is often referred to as SOS. It evaluates the opponents of a team and provides an analysis of the level of difficulty for that team.
The SOS helps draw a base by calculating the win rate of opponents. Once the opponents for the new season are revealed, the SOS can be formed and help set the expectation for a franchise for that year.
In 2022, six teams out of seven qualified for the Playoffs that were put on the easiest list. From the hardest list, only two out of seven managed to do the same. It speaks about the accuracy of the test result.
All the SOS points of those who made the 2022-23 Playoffs are:
SOS Scores 2022
| Kansas City Chiefs | .533 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | .464 |
| Buffalo Bills | .512 |
| San Francisco 49ers | .533 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | .536 |
| Minnesota Vikings | .484 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | .469 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | .535 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | .519 |
| Dallas Cowboys | .462 |
| Baltimore Ravens | .474 |
| New York Giants | .465 |
| Miami Dolphins | .481 |
| Seattle Seahawks | .517 |
2023 Season Opener
NFL Season Opener 2023 is set for 7th September 2023. The NFL Kickoff Game will be played at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.
The Arrowhead Stadium ranks among the 10 loudest stadium in the NFL. It has a capacity of 76,416.
The Super Bowl LVII winner Kansas City Chiefs, will have their first home tie in the season’s opening game. CBS Sports predicts that they will play against Philadelphia Eagles.
The regular season will conclude on 7th January 2024. Playoffs will commence on 13th January 2024. Likewise, the Super Bowl LVIII is scheduled for 11th February 2024. Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada, will host the event.
The season opener of 2022 took place on 8th September. The Super Bowl LVI winner Los Angeles Rams competed against Buffalo Bills in the kickoff setup. The end result was 31-10, favoring the Bills.
2023 Schedule Changes
NFL schedule changes 2023 introduced the addition of Monday Night Football games. It will help CBS and Fox to shift the scheduling of Sunday games.
Three playoff implications ties have been shifted. Two of them are programmed for 6th January 2024.
One will be played at 4.30 p.m., while another will be contested at 8.15 p.m. ET. Both matchups will air on ESPN, ESPN+, and ABC networks.
Likewise, the last one will be advanced to NBC Sunday Night Football. The time for that one is 8.20 p.m. ET.
The 2022 season saw scheduling changes in weeks 11, 14, 15, 17, and 18. A total of 17 setups were shifted to another time, cross-flexed, and changed locations.
There is also an introduction of an NFL Black Friday game. Other significant changes are:
- All teams will not play in a primetime game
- Games will not be owned exclusively by networks
- Teams can now play Thursday Night Football more than once
NFL Defense Strength Of Schedule
NFL teams strength of schedule for the Kansas City Chiefs is .512. It is the least in the AFC West.
San Francisco 49ers
49ers strength of schedule is .514. They have the Opponents’ Combined Record of 147-142-0.
New Orleans Saints
Saints strength of schedule is .427. They will be a dark horse in the upcoming season.
New England Patriots
New England Patriots strength of schedule is .549. They are the third team with .549.
Philadelphia Eagles
Eagles 2023 strength of schedule is .566. They will contest against 10 out of 14 playoff teams.
Los Angeles Chargers
Chargers strength of schedule is .517. Their Opponents’ Combined Record is 149-139.
Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys strength of schedule is .549. They share the exact tally with New York Giants.
Minnesota Vikings
Vikings strength of schedule is .497. Chicago Bears have the exact numbers.
Atlanta Falcons
Falcons strength of schedule is .417. They will compete against only four teams who made the 2022-23 playoffs.
Houston Texans
Texans strength of schedule is .431. They may make the playoffs from AFC South.
NFL Strength Of Schedule Rankings
NFL easiest strength of schedule is .417 for Atlanta Falcons. Another team with SOS under .430 is New Orleans Saints.
They top the list for the easiest SOS. CBS Sports reports that the Falcons or the Saints can make it to the postseason. It is because at least one of the two easiest had done so in the last seven seasons.
In 2022, Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders shared .462. The Cowboys went to the postseason.
CBS Sports reports that Philadelphia Eagles had .430, and the Cowboys had .452 in 2021. Both got into playoffs that year.
Hardest
Hardest NFL Schedule 2023 is managed by Philadelphia Eagles. They have a SOS score of .566.
This is their first time landing on the toughest SOS list since 2021. The last two times, they were ever-present at the opposite end.
Miami Dolphins have .554. The Dolphins and the Eagles are the only two with scores over .550.
Here is a complete list of teams from easiest to hardest SOS, along with their respective score for 2023:
| 1. Atlanta Falcons | .417 |
| 2. New Orleans Saints | .427 |
| 3. Houston Texans | .431 |
| 4. Indianapolis Colts | .434 |
| 5. Tennessee Titans | .448 |
| 6. Carolina Panthers | .453 |
| 7. Cleveland Browns | .460 |
| 8. Pittsburgh Steelers | .470 |
| 9. Green Bay Packers | .476 |
| 10. Jacksonville Jaguars | .477 |
| 11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers | .483 |
| 12. Baltimore Ravens | .484 |
| 13. Detroit Lions | .495 |
| 14. Minnesota Vikings | .497 |
| 15. Chicago Bears | .497 |
| 16. Cincinnati Bengals | .510 |
| 17. Kansas City Chiefs | .512 |
| 18. San Francisco 49ers | .514 |
| 19. Seattle Seahawks | .517 |
| 20. Denver Broncos | .517 |
| 21. Los Angeles Chargers | .517 |
| 22. Arizona Cardinals | .519 |
| 23. Las Vegas Raiders | .524 |
| 24. Los Angeles Rams | .533 |
| 25. Washington Commanders | .535 |
| 26. Buffalo Bills | .542 |
| 27. New York Jets | .545 |
| 28. New York Giants | .549 |
| 29. Dallas Cowboys | .549 |
| 30. New England Patriot | .549 |
| 31. Miami Dolphins | .554 |
| 32. Philadelphia Eagles | .566 |
Schedule Tiebreaker
NFL Strength of Schedule Tiebreaker is used primarily in the NFL Draft. It is used secondarily in playoff qualification and divisional ranking.
The first pick for the draft is handed to the worst-finishing team. Other 18 positions are also handed as per their performance in the league.
To determine the remaining 14 places, their playoff positioning matters the most. A tiebreaker is essential when two or more teams end up with the exact result.
They may have the exact win, loss, and tie that year. In such cases, their place in the draft is left to SOS.
It processes the available data and presents the opponents’ combined win percentage. The one with less win percentage gets the upper hand.
What happens when the Strength of Schedule of two or more teams is exactly the same?
If the SOS outcome matches, the minimalist data, such as division and conference tiebreakers, will be analyzed.
In case that tally also comes out to be exact, then these methods are applied to determine the result:
- Head-to-head record
- Win-loss-draw percentage in standard matches
- Overall Strength of Victory
- Number of points for and against
- Overall net points
- Overall net touchdown record
- Coin flip