2017 NFL Schedule: League did Atlanta Falcons no Favors in Divisional Scheduling
By Randy Gurzi
The 2017 NFL schedule was released on Thursday Night and while the five Prime Time games for the Atlanta Falcons was nice, their NFC South schedule isn’t
The good, the bad and the ugly came out Thursday night when the 2017 NFL schedule was released. The Atlanta Falcons had all three on theirs — including a whole lot of ugly to end the season.
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First, the good. The Falcons will be featured in five Prime Time games this seasons starting with a Week 2 home opener in the new Mercedez-Benz Stadium against the Green Bay Packers. This regular season ribbon cutting will take place in front of a national audience on Sunday Night Football. There’s also a Sunday Night Week 7 Super Bowl rematch against the New England Patriots and a Monday Night Football game against the Seattle Seahawks on the road. They also have a Thursday Night game against the New Orleans Saints and a road game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The bad is that two of their big re-matches are on the road. Both games against the Patriots and Seahawks — who Atlanta split games with last season including the playoffs — are on the road in tough stadiums.
The ugly is how the year ends for the Dirty Birds. The powers that be in the NFL decided it was fair to have them play four divisional games to end the season, and five-of their final six being the tough-fought divisional battles.
Anyone who watches the NFL knows that records mean nothing in these games. Divisional games are battles against teams that know you best and they take their toll. Atlanta now plays the Tampa Bay Bucs in Week 12, the New Orleans Saints in Week 14, on the road to face Tampa in Week 15, on the road to face New Orleans in Week 15 and then a final home game against the Carolina Panthers.
Must Read: Atlanta Falcons 2017 schedule release: Games, dates and time leaks — Updated
The league has made more of an effort to close the seasons out with divisional foes facing off. It has helped ratings and divisional titles are often on the line. However, forcing the Falcons to play not only the Bucs but also the Saints twice in three weeks is a bit much. One thing is for sure, if they can get out of their crammed in NFC South schedule unscathed, they will be well set up for a post season run.