Written by :
Published on :
The 2010 - 2011 NFL regular season schedule was released on Tuesday. Gambling911.com looks at the odds for teams with the most favorable schedule.
The Atlanta Falcons (pay $1100 for every $100 bet to win the NFC Conference Championship at Sports Interaction) - The Falcons have played decent football over the past two years. The 2010 - 2011 NFL regular season schedule is favorable for Atlanta in that they will kick off the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers on the road. Normally, that might not be considered much of a reward but the Steelers will be without a suspended Ben Roethlisberger during Game One. They also won't play any cold weather teams in December. Oh, but there is one caveat there. The Falcons will play three straight road games.
The Denver Broncos (pay $2500 for every $100 bet should they win the AFC Championship) - The Broncos surprised a lot of people this past year with a strong start against some solid teams. The 2010 - 2011 NFL regular season doesn't look nearly as bad. Assuming the Broncos take care of business at home, they should overcome all but the Chargers on the road during the second half of the season (at least in theory). During the first half of 2010 they host Indianapolis, then go on the road to play in Tennessee and Baltimore. All three of these games should be tough. A game in San Francisco and one against the Jets at home could also be a challenge. But if Denver can go 5-3 the first half of the season, they should be able to roll over most of their remaining opponents (in theory at least).
The Philadelphia Eagles have the easiest schedule in the conference, according to the Eagles Mix Blog. However, there schedule is ranked as the ninth-toughest schedule in the NFL, based on last year's records. Their opponents combined for a .520 win percentage and were 133-123 record. They would pay $750 for every $100 bet with a conference win.
The Arizona Cardinals probably have the easiest schedule in the league, but they may not have one of the best teams. Arizona would pay $1800 for every $100 bet should they win the conference.
Other relatively easy schedules include the San Francisco 49ers (+1800 odds or 18/1 odds of winning the NFC Conference) and the Carolina Panthers. Thanks in part to playing the relatively weak NFC West, Carolina's schedule is softer compared to last season, when it had the second-toughest slate based on the previous seasons records.
The Indianapolis Colts - As the +400 favorite to win the AFC Conference, they have one of the toughest schedules of the 2010 - 2011 regular NFL season, which includes a road-heavy first half of the season. Nearly every road team looks capable of making the Playoffs except for Oakland when we consider last year's play and tack on the prospect of Washington performing much better under Donovan McNabb's leadership.
Dan Shapiro, Gambling911.com
