NFL Rumors: Oakland Raiders have toughest schedule in 2014
By Josh Hill
The NFL schedules have yet to be released, but we’ve known for a while who will be playing who in 2014, it’s just a matter of when that we don’t know. When it comes to who teams will be playing, the Oakland Raiders seem to have gotten the short end of the stick, as the team currently has the toughest schedule of the season.
According to NFL.com’s Kevin Patra, the Raiders have the hardest schedule as of right now, something that might not make fans too happy.
"The Oakland Raiders of the mighty AFC West will face three playoff teams within their division, playing each twice in 2014 — and outside of practice, they don’t get to face the Oakland Raiders.Those facts give the Raiders the toughest strength of schedule heading into the 2014 season, according to NFL Media’s research team."
The Raiders have the misfortune of being in the suddenly dominant AFC West where they play the Chargers, Broncos and Chiefs twice, all playoff teams in 2013.
Of course, free agency and the draft will change the strength of the schedule, and there’s no saying the Raiders won’t be tougher opponents in 2014 either. But for now, they’re facing an uphill climb that doesn’t seem too fair for a team that has a top-5 draft pick this year.