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Patriots' 2025 Schedule Ranks Among Nfl's Easiest
Patriots' 2025 schedule ranks among NFL's easiest originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
There’s genuine excitement surrounding the New England Patriots as the 2025 NFL season approaches.
Mike Vrabel replaced Jerod Mayo as the head coach in January. Drake Maye looks like a legitimate franchise quarterback. The team spent more than $300 million in free agency to address weak spots all over the roster. New England’s 2025 draft class also received very strong grades from experts.
The Patriots will need to prove it on the field at some point, but there’s a case to be made for them being one of the most improved teams next season.
Another factor that could spark a major turnaround is the Patriots’ 2025 regular season schedule, which was released Wednesday night.
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It’s not a difficult 17-game slate for the Patriots. In fact, it’s the league’s third-easiest schedule (easiest for an AFC team) based on their opponents’ 2024 win percentage.
The Patriots’ 2025 opponents had a .429 win percentage last season. Only the New Orleans Saints (.419) and San Francisco 49ers (.415) have easier schedules based on that metric.
If you determine strength of schedule using projected 2025 win totals from oddsmakers, the Patriots have the second-easiest schedule behind the 49ers, per Sharp Football.
Only four (Ravens, Bills, Steelers and Buccaneers) of the Patriots’ 14 opponents next season made the playoffs in 2024.
Another schedule factor to consider is the Patriots playing three of their first four games at home.
They’ll host the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1, the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3 and the Carolina Panthers in Week 4. Those are three very winnable matchups versus teams that don’t have a top-tier quarterback. If the Patriots go 3-1 to start — they travel to Miami to play the Dolphins in Week 2 — they could build some real momentum.
It’s not all easy for the Patriots regarding their 2025 schedule. They do face a couple really good teams, including the Buffalo Bills twice and the Baltimore Ravens. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a tough matchup with their high-scoring offense. The last four games after the Week 14 bye is a difficult stretch, too.
But overall, it’s a pretty favorable schedule for the Patriots. And if they take advantage of it, they could potentially be in the mix for an AFC wild card playoff spot coming out of the bye week.
