Do not let anyone tell you differently.
The release of the schedule matters, BIG TIME.
When you play certain teams, when the bye week is, along with other variables such as injuries and weather, all matter.
Teams have control of other pivotal offseason periods such as free agency and the draft, but the schedule is the luck of the draw. Sometimes a lucky break can be the difference between making and missing the playoffs.
Sometimes schedule difficulty is accurately forecasted before the season and other times favorable (or unfortunate) breaks can’t be seen right away, but the layout matters.
Facing the worst team in the NFL likely led by a rookie quarterback with limited offseason activities is a perfect way to start the season.
If Joe Burrow isn’t the Bengals Week 1 starter, then Ryan Finley would get the start, which would be a welcome sight for a Texans defense with a lot of question marks and a first-year defensive coordinator.
Nick Foles, the likely starter in Chicago, would be early in the process of trying to click with his teammates and it wouldn’t be miserably cold.
Have you ever been to Chicago in December? It is miserably cold. The Texans should hope to play the Bears sooner rather than later.
With what the Texans have invested in their team this season combined with the Patriots losing Tom Brady the Texans should expect to beat New England no matter when they see them.
I’m aware this is a dangerous assumption to make, but I will take my chances with the Pats coming to NRG in week three.
The first division game of the season and first matchup with the old Oilers -- after three games the Texans would likely be favored to win -- seems ideal.
Tennessee is a popular pick to win the AFC South, but you have to play them twice and you might as well get the road matchup out of the way early so you can host them in H-Town down the stretch.
Is Jacksonville even trying to win? What better way to bounce back after a potential loss in Nashville than by hosting a rebuilding division opponenet?
This comes down to weather, it’s better to go to Cleveland in October than December.
Get the road game out of the way, then host the division opponent down the stretch.
There is no right time to face the Ravens. Let’s get it over with before the bye week.
Perfect time to rest up and prepare for the final stretch.
The ideal opponent to face coming off the bye week and looking to start the final stretch off with a W.
Assuming every team has to play a Thursday game, facing Detroit on Thanksgiving would be awesome.
Thursday games are BRUTAL for NFL players, but if you have to play two games in five days this season, then Jacksonville and Detroit is the ideal duo.
Selfishly I would like to watch the Texans on Thanksgiving and get the weekend off. But most importantly, the Texans would face a flawed team in their Thursday game, would get time with their families for Thanksgiving as well as extra rest heading into a huge game in Week 13.
Extra rest after the Thanksgiving game to prepare for the Titans in a game that could have major AFC South implications. A Monday Night Football matchup and another extra day of rest in front of a night crowd at NRG would be even better, but I would settle for Sunday Night Football.
Pittsburgh is not an easy place to play, but the constant beating Ben Roethlisberger seems to take each year makes playing the Steelers later in the season more ideal.
The last time Aaron Rodgers played at NRG, he had six passes against the Texans in 2012. Maybe the drama in Green Bay hits a peak and by the time Week 15 comes along, the Packers are one of the NFL’s train wrecks.
Maybe in Week 16 the Super Bowl champions already have the AFC West and home field advantage wrapped-up, which means they could rest some guys. Hell, maybe the Texans have the AFC South wrapped-up and can do the same.
I think the Chiefs are going to be even better in 2020, but might as well face them later rather than sooner.
I have heard people suggest they would like the Texans to face the Chiefs early, but given the fact the Chiefs are bringing back pretty much the same team and the Texans have new weapons on offense, that does not seem like the ideal situation.
This is like asking when you would like to have a colonoscopy. Screw it, Week 16 it is.
Final game of the season against the Colts. It only seems like the perfect way to end the perfect 2020 schedule.