Packers have paid the price more than any other team because the NFL has ignored a fixable problem for far too long
In any single year, a team will have a tougher schedule in the NFL. And this is not even about the opponents, but more about travel schedule, rest days, and how the games are sorted out throughout the regular season. The expectation, though, is that year over year everything will even out.Well, that's not exactly […]
In any single year, a team will have a tougher schedule in the NFL. And this is not even about the opponents, but more about travel schedule, rest days, and how the games are sorted out throughout the regular season. The expectation, though, is that year over year everything will even out.
Well, that's not exactly how it has happened for the Green Bay Packers in one specific, and very important, aspect.
Since 2019, when Matt LaFleur took over as the Packers head coach, no other team in the NFL has had a worse schedule in net rest days. That means the Packers are facing opponents who had more rest days before the game, and the net is -28 over the past six seasons and already projecting the 2025 schedule.
The difference to the top teams is truly impactful. The Detroit Lions, an NFC North rival, have had 48 extra days of rest compared to their opponents, a 76-day difference from the Packers. That's wild.
The Lions and the Dallas Cowboys tend to benefit because they always play on Thanksgiving, which constantly gives them extra rest in the following game—or two games later, if they play on two consecutive Thursdays.
The worst year for the Packers was 2022, when they had a negative 13 net rest, and it's reasonable to think that it was a factor for their poor performance, leading to them missing the playoffs for the only time in LaFleur's era.
In 2025, it won't be a big problem. The Packers have a negative two net rest. However, the Lions' advantage over the other NFC North teams is significant once again.
The NFL has a big model and an electronic system to build the schedule. The league can add filters and create rules to make everything fair for the teams. It would be easy to establish parity year over year in this regard, but the NFL seems to not care about it. Good for the Lions, bad for the Packers.
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