Raiders Schedule

[Raider Dee]

Ooh!

Dallas on Thanksgiving again. I'd be keen to attend that

[Randy]

Oakland Raiders visit Colts, Andrew Luck in regular-season opener
Steve Corkran, BayAreaNewsGroup
http://www.insidebayarea.com/raiders/ci_23057461/oakland-raiders-visit-colts-andrew-luck-regular-season

http://www.csnbayarea.com/blog/paul-gutierrez/raiders-2013-schedule-includes-thanksgiving-game-dallas

[Randy]

Oakland Raiders 2013 Full Schedule
http://www.raiders.com/news/article-1/Oakland-Raiders-2013-Schedule-Announced/80038f4b-6d82-4197-b4df-7e4ae781841a

Full 2013 NFL Schedule - All 32 Teams
http://www.nfl.com/schedules/2013/REG1

http://www.nfl.com/schedules/2013/REG/RAIDERS   (NFL.com referring to the Raiders as the "Silver and Bleak")

@RAIDERS fans: How many games will OAK win next season? Tweet your answer to #RaidersSchedule!




• For the third time in four years (2010, 2011 and 2013), the Raiders will open on the road.
• The Raiders open at Indianapolis, renewing a storied rivalry with that franchise that includes the Ghost to the Post contest in 1977. This season marks the first time the Raiders have ever kicked off a season against the Indianapolis/Baltimore Colts.
• Oakland will travel to Dallas for a Thanksgiving Day matchup for the second time in four years. The Raiders fell to the Cowboys on Nov. 26, 2009, 24-7.
• The Raiders will play a Monday night game at Denver in Week 3, marking the latest in the year that Oakland has played a Monday Night contest since 2006 (Nov. 6, 2006, at Seattle).
• The Raiders will have the unique experience of playing both New York teams at MetLife Stadium this season, traveling to take on the Giants on Nov. 11 and the Jets on Dec. 8. It will be the third time in team history that the Raiders have traveled to the Big Apple to face both the Jets and Giants in a single regular season, joining the 1989 and 1995 campaigns. The Raiders were a combined 3-1 in those games.
• The Silver and Black will visit two NFL venues for the first time this season. Oakland will play at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis for the first time on Sept. 8, and will travel to MetLife Stadium in New York for a pair of games in 2013.
• The Raiders will play five games against teams that earned postseason berths in 2012. Oakland will play two games against Denver, host Washington and travel to Houston and Indianapolis.
• Three of the Raiders’ four victories last season came at O.co Coliseum, and the Silver and Black will be hosting all three of those opponents again this season. Jacksonville (Sept. 15), Pittsburgh (Oct. 27) and Kansas City (Dec. 15) will all play games in Oakland in 2013.
• Three of the Raiders’ first five games will be at home, but four of the Raiders’ five games from Week 10 - Week 14 will be on the road.
• The Raiders will meet the Broncos on a Monday night for the first time since 2011, when Oakland defeated Denver 23-20 in the season opener.
• Oakland will close a season against the Broncos for the first time since 1995, the Raiders’ first season after returning to Oakland.
• Oakland’s six division games are bunched at the front end (Weeks 3, 5 and 6) and the back end (Weeks 15, 16 and 17) of the schedule.
• The Raiders close a season with three division games for the first time since 1996, when they hosted Kansas City, then traveled to Denver and returned home for Seattle, a former AFC West foe.
• The Raiders’ three trips to the Eastern Time Zone are somewhat spread out, at Indianapolis in Week 1, at the Giants in Week 10 and at the Jets in Week 14.
• Five of the Raiders’ final eight contests are on the road, including three of their last five. However, after their Thanksgiving Day game at Dallas Nov. 28, Oakland will get a few days of rest before returning to the Meadowlands to face the Jets on Dec. 8.
• Tennessee will visit O.co Coliseum on Nov. 24, marking the Titans’ first visit to Oakland since the 2004 season, the longest stretch without a visit among AFC teams.
• The Raiders will travel to Houston on Nov. 17 for the first time since an emotional 25-20 victory over the Texans on Oct. 9, 2011, the day after the passing of owner Al Davis.

[Randy]

Raiders 2013 Preseason Schedule Announced
Raiders.com
Friday Aug. 9 - 7pm Pacific - Cowboys @ Raiders
Friday Aug. 16 - 5pm Pacific - Raiders @ Saints
Friday Aug. 23 - 7pm Pacific - Bears @ Raiders
Thursday Aug. 29 - 7pm Pacific - Raiders @ Seahawks


http://www.raiders.com/news/article-1/Oakland-Raiders-Preseason-Schedule-Set/bdc0203c-3bf3-4a20-9397-9a6d20cc6498

[Randy]

Raiders to have fourth 'easiest' schedule in 2013
Paul Gutierrez, Comcast SportsNet
A 4-12 season has its, um, rewards, no?

The chance to coach in the Senior Bowl. The No. 3 overall draft pick. And, as it turns out, the fourth "easiest" schedule in the NFL for 2013.

At least, that's what the .469 combined winning percentage of the Raiders' opponents next season, as compiled by NFL.com, tells us...

By the way, the Denver Broncos have the NFL's easiest schedule next year

Complete story:
http://www.csnbayarea.com/blog/paul-gutierrez/raiders-have-fourth-easiest-schedule-2013

[Randy]

             hello,
its kind of puzzling to me...the last time we played dallas was on thanksgiving in 2009-we played at the new cowboys stadium(lost badly),we also played pittsburgh in 2012 at home(coliseum) and won this past season....shouldn;t we play dallas at home in 2013 and at pittsburgh in 2013?

In regards to the Pit Game.

Our 2012 game was when we played the full AFC NORTH slate of teams and we were scheduled to play Pit at home after last playing them in the AFC NORTH schedule of games at Heinz Field (that was the same season that Bruce Gradkowski beat the Bengals at home and Pittsburgh at Heinz Field)

In regards to the Dallas game, they sometimes don't rotate it every couple of years for reasons unbeknown to me and it's happening in this instance (another time this has happened was when Randy Moss scored his 100th touchdown pass at Candlestick stadium and 4 years later you think the game would be played at Oakland, but the raiders got a 2nd consecutive trip to the the Candledick where we lost something pathetic like 13-9 after leading 9-0) 2010 season.

I think the rotation requirement is that we play each team at home and away at least once each 8 year cycle. I don't think there's any requirement that says they have to alternate home and away though. So maybe you could play home first, then away second (vs a certain team) in one 8-year cycle, then away first and home second in the next 8-year cycle.

Here is the way the rule is spelled out:

·        Teams are guaranteed to play all nondivision opponents in their conference at least once every three years, and at home at least once every six years.

·        Every AFC team will play every NFC team once every four years, and at home once every eight years.


So.... the requirement only states that we must play every AFC team at home at least once every 6 years, and every NFC team at home exactly once every 8 years....it doesn't say that if you play a team at home the first time you play them in a cycle, then away the 2nd time you play them....that in the next 8-year cycle you have to repeat this pattern. What's too keep the home/away from reversing in the next 8-year cycle? So maybe home/away in one 8-year cycle, then away/home in the next one.

For instance, play against the 49ers in SF in 2010, Oakland in 2014, Oakland again in 2018, then SF in 2022. The two away games would be 12 years apart, and the two home games 4 years apart....but you would still be within the rules of the rotation. What do you think?

[RaiderWildeStyle]

             hello,
its kind of puzzling to me...the last time we played dallas was on thanksgiving in 2009-we played at the new cowboys stadium(lost badly),we also played pittsburgh in 2012 at home(coliseum) and won this past season....shouldn;t we play dallas at home in 2013 and at pittsburgh in 2013?

In regards to the Pit Game.

Our 2012 game was when we played the full AFC NORTH slate of teams and we were scheduled to play Pit at home after last playing them in the AFC NORTH schedule of games at Heinz Field (that was the same season that Bruce Gradkowski beat the Bengals at home and Pittsburgh at Heinz Field)

In regards to the Dallas game, they sometimes don't rotate it every couple of years for reasons unbeknown to me and it's happening in this instance (another time this has happened was when Randy Moss scored his 100th touchdown pass at Candlestick stadium and 4 years later you think the game would be played at Oakland, but the raiders got a 2nd consecutive trip to the the Candledick where we lost something pathetic like 13-9 after leading 9-0) 2010 season.

[houston raider]

             hello,
its kind of puzzling to me...the last time we played dallas was on thanksgiving in 2009-we played at the new cowboys stadium(lost badly),we also played pittsburgh in 2012 at home(coliseum) and won this past season....shouldn;t we play dallas at home in 2013 and at pittsburgh in 2013?

[Randy]

Raiders 2013 opponents:

Home

Jacksonville, Tennessee, Philadelphia, Washington, Pittsburgh, Broncos, Chargers, Chiefs


Away

Houston, Indianapolis, Dallas, Giants, Jets, Broncos, Chargers, Chiefs


By the way....

I sent an email to the guy who runs Johnny Road Trip.com, and asked him if he could clarify the "West Coast Modification" to the NFL schedule rotation. I wanted to know why the east coast teams are protected from having to make more than one west coast trip in a year....but they don't have any reciprocal protection for west coast teams traveling east. His answer made me feel kind of stupid, since it's kind of obvious now. There are way more east coast teams (17) than west coast teams (4). Here is his reply to my question:


Hi,
 
We have the same conspiracy theories here in Baltimore.  These idiots call in to talk shows and complain that we played at New England twice in a row, people don’t get it that the matchups are set years in advance.  I have heard national talk show guys make comments that indicate they have no idea how scheduling works.  And the old concept of a “first-place schedule” is long gone, since only two games are based on matchups.  Prior to 2002, four or five games were based on matchup, and all the fifth-placed teams played much different schedules than everyone else.
 
Here is a good article:  http://www.coldhardfootballfacts.com/content/discomfort-zone-impact-travel-nfl-games/14372/
 
There are 17 EC teams, so there is no way to avoid WC teams taking trips since there are only four of them (plus two Mountain teams).  The AFC East has four EC teams, so when the NFC/AFC West play them, they will have to take two trips east.  There are simply too many EC teams to do anything about it.  In 2017, the Raiders go to NE, NYJ, Philly, and NYG.  The best they could hope for would be to go to Dallas/Wash instead of Philly/NYG, which is what San Diego gets.  That’s why the NFL supposedly is trying to schedule WC teams at 4:00 Eastern; that is the best they can hope for really.
 
Nothing says EC teams cannot have two WC trips, but I think now it would happen only if a team played the AFC and NFC West in the same year.  That will still happen.  They just changed it so a team would never go to both Oakland and SD or Seattle and SF in the same year; a team could still go to Oakland and SF, however.  In fact, that will happen to the NFC East teams in 2017; for example, Dallas and the Giants will go to  San Diego and Seattle.




Note: The last game in each column is a single game against a team from the listed division to be determined by the previous year's finish. The Raiders finished in 3rd place in their division in 2012, so the 3rd place AFC North team they play in 2013 is the Steelers (home), the 3rd place AFC East team they play is the Jets (away).

NFL Standings 2012
http://www.nfl.com/standings

[Randy]

              hello,
If i remember correctly the Raiders had to play SIX games this year in the eastern time zone(Cinci,balt,atl,carolina,miami, and one more), the Raiders LOST all 6 games..The Raiders traveled the Most of ANY NFL teams in 2012....you don;t think there's a BIAS against the Raiders from the national media?It's bad enough we have to take cheap shots-every freakin week by Dan Patrick(real A-hole),Collin Cowher and the like?
    It sounds like Pats owner Robert Kraft has ALOT of POWER with the NFL league office...NO Surprise there...their organization bitchin so much to get a west coast adjustment...what do they do take the AMTRACK or Greyhound to the west coast games?
    Just another reason why i can;t stand the PANSY Pats...its bad enough i have to hear a family member Always talkin SMACK about his Cheatriots!!!The Pats team logo looks like the usps...and we know how ShiT@ty their service can be...

Who we play against is pre-determined using an 8-year rotation. Everyone else in our division has the same schedule as us, except for two games. If we get hosed, so do the Broncos, Chargers, and Chiefs....since they have the same schedule. Therefore, there can't be a bias, at least as far as who we play, since it's a rotating formula that applies to all 32 teams. Prior to 2002, they didn't have this rotation....and you could go 15 or 20 years without playing a certain team. Other teams you might end up playing all the time. It was up to the NFL. Back then, yeah, a bias could have definitely come into play....we'd never know why they chose certain schedules because they didn't have to tell you. Now, it a rotation that applies to all 32 teams so you play every other team so many times (minimum) in 8 years. You can end up playing some teams more, depending on where you finish in the division.

"...it guarantees a similar schedule for every team in a division each season, as all four teams will play fourteen out of their sixteen games against common opponents or each other".

"...This schedule was designed so all teams are guaranteed to play every other team in its own conference at least once every three years, and to play every team in the other conference exactly once every four years. Additionally, the schedule guarantees that each team will both host and visit every other team within its conference at least once every six years, and will host and visit every team in the other conference exactly once every eight years"

Here's the whole explanation in wikipedia (see the "current formula" section of this article):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Football_League_regular_season




Now WHEN we play the games is up to the NFL to decide each year. Here's what Wikipedia says about that:

"Although this scheduling formula determines each of the thirty-two teams' respective opponents, the league usually does not release the final regular schedule with specific dates and times until the spring; the NFL needs several months to coordinate the entire season schedule so that, among other reasons, games are worked around various scheduling conflicts, and that it helps maximize TV ratings"




I explained the whole thing before in this thread, in more detail, here:
http://www.raidernationpodcast.com/forum/index.php?topic=962.msg21557#msg21557

I'm still confused on that "West Coast Modification" thing though. Does that mean they can deviate from the above rotation? If that's true then a bias could come into play I guess. I just checked the Patriots 2012 schedule, and they did indeed have only one west coast game. The Raiders had 5 east coast games by my count. I sent Johnny Road Trip a question about this. I'll pass on what he replies.



P.S. While doing a Google search on "NFL Rotation" and "bias", I ran across someone who made a similar comment to yours on a Saints forum. He thought the NFL was being biased against the Saints. Another guy on the forum explained how the rotation works, and may have done a better job explaining than I did. Here is his explanation:

http://saintsreport.com/forums/4801169-post19.html

I'm trying to join this Saints forum so I can ask the guy his opinion on the west coast thing. I'm waiting to see if they let me join their forum.

[houston raider]

              hello,
If i remember correctly the Raiders had to play SIX games this year in the eastern time zone(Cinci,balt,atl,carolina,miami, and one more), the Raiders LOST all 6 games..The Raiders traveled the Most of ANY NFL teams in 2012....you don;t think there's a BIAS against the Raiders from the national media?It's bad enough we have to take cheap shots-every freakin week by Dan Patrick(real A-hole),Collin Cowher and the like?
    It sounds like Pats owner Robert Kraft has ALOT of POWER with the NFL league office...NO Surprise there...their organization bitchin so much to get a west coast adjustment...what do they do take the AMTRACK or Greyhound to the west coast games?
    Just another reason why i can;t stand the PANSY Pats...its bad enough i have to hear a family member Always talkin SMACK about his Cheatriots!!!The Pats team logo looks like the usps...and we know how ShiT@ty their service can be...

[Randy]

Randy this is the one I found to be most accurate

Mike, that looks like the exact same one I used (Johnny Road Trip), except the home and away for 2014 are reversed on yours. It has the same purple text, same font and everything. Where did you find that one? Here's where I found mine with the teams reversed for 2014: http://www.johnnyroadtrip.com/schedules/nfl_future_afcw.htm

I reversed the home and away for 2014 on the schedule I had posted earlier. Here it is pasted in here:



Does that look correct to you guys? If anyone sees something that doesn't look right, let me know. Hopefully this one is accurate.

Hey, on another note.....Mike....you wouldn't happen to have a corrected version of the Mayan calendar too, would you? 

[Matty Raider]

" The Raiders are assured of finishing in third place in the AFC West, regardless how they fare against the Chargers. That means they will host the third-place team from the AFC North (Pittsburgh Steelers) next season and play on the road against the third-place team from the AFC East (Miami Dolphins or New York Jets)."

You just know it's gonna be Miami. AGAIN.

Hope not.

I want a game in New York. (free accommodation hookup) 
Plus the JETS are always a shipwreck i feel confident against!!!

Me too!  The Jets are awful.

As far as the schedule, in 2009 we played the Redskins in Oakland, NYG in NY and played in Dallas on Thanksgiving.  I think a few of those games are backwards as far as home/away....at least for the NFC East games.

[RAIDER MIKE]

Randy this is the one I found to be most accurate

[RaiderWildeStyle]

" The Raiders are assured of finishing in third place in the AFC West, regardless how they fare against the Chargers. That means they will host the third-place team from the AFC North (Pittsburgh Steelers) next season and play on the road against the third-place team from the AFC East (Miami Dolphins or New York Jets)."

You just know it's gonna be Miami. AGAIN.

Hope not.

I want a game in New York. (free accommodation hookup) 
Plus the JETS are always a shipwreck i feel confident against!!!

[SROTBFM]

" The Raiders are assured of finishing in third place in the AFC West, regardless how they fare against the Chargers. That means they will host the third-place team from the AFC North (Pittsburgh Steelers) next season and play on the road against the third-place team from the AFC East (Miami Dolphins or New York Jets)."

You just know it's gonna be Miami. AGAIN.

[Randy]

The post I made a few days ago, with that chart of Raiders' opponents through 2019 was something I copied from another website. Looks like there were some errors in it. Thanks for pointing those out guys. Here is where I got that schedule from: http://www.johnnyroadtrip.com/schedules/nfl_future_afcw.htm

Note the disclaimer that the Johnny Road Trip website posted with their schedule:

BIG TIME DISCLAIMER:  BEYOND 2013 THIS IS A PROJECTED SCHEDULE BASED ON PRIOR YEARS!!!  The NFL has announced the schedule rotation only through 2013 (click here for 2012 opponents).  The schedule below assumes they will follow the same rotation pattern through 2019; they may not follow the same pattern!

I'll do some checking and see if I can come up with an accurate list. Since the NFL apparently hasn't officially announced the opponents, we may have to wait a while to get a schedule that's guaranteed to be accurate.

Here is something that IS accurate though on a couple of our games next year:

" The Raiders are assured of finishing in third place in the AFC West, regardless how they fare against the Chargers. That means they will host the third-place team from the AFC North (Pittsburgh Steelers) next season and play on the road against the third-place team from the AFC East (Miami Dolphins or New York Jets)."

http://www.insidebayarea.com/raiders/ci_22255448/oakland-raiders-qb-carson-palmer-suffers-broken-ribs



P.S.  Just saw this link on another forum. Not sure if it's accurate:

http://www.raiderfans.net/forum/oakland-raiders-forum-message-board/190264-2013-oakland-raiders-schedule-released.html


and here is something I found on Broncos.com:

http://www.denverbroncos.com/schedule-and-events/future-opponents.html


and here's another schedule I found using Google that's different yet:

http://www.nflschedule2013.com/raiders.html

[NJ Raider Kev]

I believe that the Eagles were in Oakland last time and thought that the game was going to be in Philly next year. Are the home and away games alternated? Looks like the next two games are played in California.


Go Raiders!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[houston raider]

   hello,
hey randy we played dallas on thanksgiving last time in reg season.....shouldn;t dallas be playing in oakland in 2013 in regular season?also we played the 49ers in 2010 at candlestick....in reg season-shouldn;t the 2014 game be at the oakland coliseum?

[Randy]

Note:  Each team plays the other teams in its division home and away each season in addition to games listed; the last game in each column is a single game against a team from the listed division to be determined by the previous year's finish

AFC East: Buffalo, Miami, New England, NY Jets
AFC South: Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Tennessee
AFC North: Baltimore, Cincinatti, Cleveland, Pittsburgh
AFC West: Denver, Kansas City, San Diego (Home and Away)

[Randy]

NFL's Top Twelve Games Of 2012 Includes Raiders Versus Bengals
http://network.yardbarker.com/nfl/article_external/the_nfls_top_twelve_games_of_2012_includes_raiders_versus_bengals/10711358

[Randy]

as for the bye week, only one statistic really matters (and randy, correct me if i'm wrong. you seem to have a lot of free time ...): the raiders have lost after the bye week every time since we went to the super bowl. it doesn't matter when the bye is, we freaking lose every time. win the damn game!

Concerning the Raiders' win/loss record after a bye week since their 2002 season....yeah, they lost every time after a bye week....9 times in a row....but before that, they won 8 of 9 times after a bye week. Look at the chart in the following article. I think the fact that the Raiders haven't had very good teams since 2002 is the main reason they've lost after bye weeks. They've lost MOST weeks, bye or no bye. But yeah, 9 in a row does stand out a bit.

Raiders performance following the bye week:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/320903-oakland-raiders-bye-bye-birdie-bye-week

Oakland Raiders: Are They "addicted" to Losing After Bye Week?
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/929215-oakland-raiders-are-they-addicted-to-losing-after-bye-week

Team Performance After Bye Weeks
http://www.predictem.com/nfl/teams-off-bye-weeks.php

"Does it matter when your bye week is?"
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/blog/?p=16

[SROTBFM]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

I'll just throw out one stat....for now.
The last time the Raiders made it to the Superbowl, in the 2002-03 season, their bye week was week 3.

Hmm, it would appear it makes no real difference - 2011 Giants (wk7), 2010 Packers (wk10), 2009 Saints (wk5), 2008 Steelers (wk6), 2007 Giants (wk9), 2006 Colts (wk6), 2005 Steelers (wk4), 2004 Patriots (wk3) - guess a good team is a good team regardless.

It's still a conspiracy!!!

Yeah Colin.....you got me wondering about this, so I wasted several hours looking up the bye weeks for each team over the last ten years, then averaging it out. Here's what I came up with:



Average bye week of non-playoff teams = 6.82

Average bye week of playoff teams = 6.63

Average bye week of Super Bowl teams = 6.55

Average bye week of the Raiders over last 10 years = 6.60



Just like you discovered, there is no real correlation of bye week to season success. But....that doesn't mean that it doesn't play a part in your season. The bigger impact on your season, I think, has to do with:

#1: How good your team is to begin with
#2: Strength of schedule
#3: The order that your game are in....travel distances, etc.
#4: How many days off between games compared to your opponent
#5: How healthy your team stays
#6: Coaching, team motivation, chemistry, etc.

I think all these things have an impact on your season. When you have your bye week could have an effect on how many wins you end up with, but it's just one of several factors. A good team with a crappy bye week might win only 12 games instead of 13. A bad team with a good bye week might win 4 games instead of 3....but I don't think it's going to make a dramatic difference.

Another stat:

Last year (2011), the two Superbowl teams, the Giants and Patriots both had their bye weeks in week 7. The Raiders had theirs in week 8.

In 2010, the Steelers had theirs in week 5 and the Packers week 10. The Raiders had theirs in week 10 also.

What does that tell us?
Answer: I wasted a couple of hours and have a headache now!

Happy to be of service

Not a complete waste of time, you've set my mind at ease if nothing else!

One more excuse for not winning off the list........

[Matty Raider]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

I'll just throw out one stat....for now.
The last time the Raiders made it to the Superbowl, in the 2002-03 season, their bye week was week 3.

Hmm, it would appear it makes no real difference - 2011 Giants (wk7), 2010 Packers (wk10), 2009 Saints (wk5), 2008 Steelers (wk6), 2007 Giants (wk9), 2006 Colts (wk6), 2005 Steelers (wk4), 2004 Patriots (wk3) - guess a good team is a good team regardless.

It's still a conspiracy!!!

Yeah Colin.....you got me wondering about this, so I wasted several hours looking up the bye weeks for each team over the last ten years, then averaging it out. Here's what I came up with:



Average bye week of non-playoff teams = 6.82

Average bye week of playoff teams = 6.63

Average bye week of Super Bowl teams = 6.55

Average bye week of the Raiders over last 10 years = 6.60



Just like you discovered, there is no real correlation of bye week to season success. But....that doesn't mean that it doesn't play a part in your season. The bigger impact on your season, I think, has to do with:

#1: How good your team is to begin with
#2: Strength of schedule
#3: The order that your game are in....travel distances, etc.
#4: How many days off between games compared to your opponent
#5: How healthy your team stays
#6: Coaching, team motivation, chemistry, etc.

I think all these things have an impact on your season. When you have your bye week could have an effect on how many wins you end up with, but it's just one of several factors. A good team with a crappy bye week might win only 12 games instead of 13. A bad team with a good bye week might win 4 games instead of 3....but I don't think it's going to make a dramatic difference.

Another stat:

Last year (2011), the two Superbowl teams, the Giants and Patriots both had their bye weeks in week 7. The Raiders had theirs in week 8.

In 2010, the Steelers had theirs in week 5 and the Packers week 10. The Raiders had theirs in week 10 also.

What does that tell us?
Answer: I wasted a couple of hours and have a headache now!

as for the bye week, only one statistic really matters (and randy, correct me if i'm wrong. you seem to have a lot of free time ...): the raiders have lost after the bye week every time since we went to the super bowl. it doesn't matter when the bye is, we freaking lose every time. win the damn game!

UGH!  No doubt!  What a bunch of no-heart pussies we have had over the years!  I hope the new regime brings some toughness to this team!!!!

[Tokai Raider]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

I'll just throw out one stat....for now.
The last time the Raiders made it to the Superbowl, in the 2002-03 season, their bye week was week 3.

Hmm, it would appear it makes no real difference - 2011 Giants (wk7), 2010 Packers (wk10), 2009 Saints (wk5), 2008 Steelers (wk6), 2007 Giants (wk9), 2006 Colts (wk6), 2005 Steelers (wk4), 2004 Patriots (wk3) - guess a good team is a good team regardless.

It's still a conspiracy!!!

Yeah Colin.....you got me wondering about this, so I wasted several hours looking up the bye weeks for each team over the last ten years, then averaging it out. Here's what I came up with:



Average bye week of non-playoff teams = 6.82

Average bye week of playoff teams = 6.63

Average bye week of Super Bowl teams = 6.55

Average bye week of the Raiders over last 10 years = 6.60



Just like you discovered, there is no real correlation of bye week to season success. But....that doesn't mean that it doesn't play a part in your season. The bigger impact on your season, I think, has to do with:

#1: How good your team is to begin with
#2: Strength of schedule
#3: The order that your game are in....travel distances, etc.
#4: How many days off between games compared to your opponent
#5: How healthy your team stays
#6: Coaching, team motivation, chemistry, etc.

I think all these things have an impact on your season. When you have your bye week could have an effect on how many wins you end up with, but it's just one of several factors. A good team with a crappy bye week might win only 12 games instead of 13. A bad team with a good bye week might win 4 games instead of 3....but I don't think it's going to make a dramatic difference.

Another stat:

Last year (2011), the two Superbowl teams, the Giants and Patriots both had their bye weeks in week 7. The Raiders had theirs in week 8.

In 2010, the Steelers had theirs in week 5 and the Packers week 10. The Raiders had theirs in week 10 also.

What does that tell us?
Answer: I wasted a couple of hours and have a headache now!

as for the bye week, only one statistic really matters (and randy, correct me if i'm wrong. you seem to have a lot of free time ...): the raiders have lost after the bye week every time since we went to the super bowl. it doesn't matter when the bye is, we freaking lose every time. win the damn game!

[Randy]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

I'll just throw out one stat....for now.
The last time the Raiders made it to the Superbowl, in the 2002-03 season, their bye week was week 3.

Hmm, it would appear it makes no real difference - 2011 Giants (wk7), 2010 Packers (wk10), 2009 Saints (wk5), 2008 Steelers (wk6), 2007 Giants (wk9), 2006 Colts (wk6), 2005 Steelers (wk4), 2004 Patriots (wk3) - guess a good team is a good team regardless.

It's still a conspiracy!!!

Yeah Colin.....you got me wondering about this, so I wasted several hours looking up the bye weeks for each team over the last ten years, then averaging it out. Here's what I came up with:



Average bye week of non-playoff teams = 6.82

Average bye week of playoff teams = 6.63

Average bye week of Super Bowl teams = 6.55

Average bye week of the Raiders over last 10 years = 6.60



Just like you discovered, there is no real correlation of bye week to season success. But....that doesn't mean that it doesn't play a part in your season. The bigger impact on your season, I think, has to do with:

#1: How good your team is to begin with
#2: Strength of schedule
#3: The order that your game are in....travel distances, etc.
#4: How many days off between games compared to your opponent
#5: How healthy your team stays
#6: Coaching, team motivation, chemistry, etc.

I think all these things have an impact on your season. When you have your bye week could have an effect on how many wins you end up with, but it's just one of several factors. A good team with a crappy bye week might win only 12 games instead of 13. A bad team with a good bye week might win 4 games instead of 3....but I don't think it's going to make a dramatic difference.

Another stat:

Last year (2011), the two Superbowl teams, the Giants and Patriots both had their bye weeks in week 7. The Raiders had theirs in week 8.

In 2010, the Steelers had theirs in week 5 and the Packers week 10. The Raiders had theirs in week 10 also.

What does that tell us?
Answer: I wasted a couple of hours and have a headache now!

[SROTBFM]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

I'll just throw out one stat....for now.
The last time the Raiders made it to the Superbowl, in the 2002-03 season, their bye week was week 3.

Hmm, it would appear it makes no real difference - 2011 Giants (wk7), 2010 Packers (wk10), 2009 Saints (wk5), 2008 Steelers (wk6), 2007 Giants (wk9), 2006 Colts (wk6), 2005 Steelers (wk4), 2004 Patriots (wk3) - guess a good team is a good team regardless.

It's still a conspiracy!!!

[Randy]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

I'll just throw out one stat....for now.
The last time the Raiders made it to the Superbowl, in the 2002-03 season, their bye week was week 3.

[RaiderWildeStyle]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

Having a early bye week is like having a sick day after MondayItus.

You turn up to work on Wednesday (Hump Day) & It's all smooth sailing to the finish line.

What I remember most about early bye weeks and the Raiders is it's usually the time most media experts predict that Al Davis would fire so & so and promote so & so, so that the raiders could turn around their season after the early stinking performance in the season.

[SROTBFM]

Finally, someone else noticed;

The Raiders also have a minor complaint, as their bye comes in Week 5 -- the seventh time in the past 12 years the Raiders have had a bye Week 5 or sooner. By comparison, it's only happened to the Patriots three times during that stretch.

(from nfl.com)

For me, an early bye is a major disadvantage, although I won't be surprised if Randy throws out some stats to prove me wrong!

[Randy]

Palmer returns to Cincinnati Nov. 25 - McFadden participates in mini-camp
http://blog.sfgate.com/raiders/2012/04/17/palmer-returns-to-cincinnati-nov-25mcfadden-participates-in-mini-camp/

[Randy]

The schedule storylines and predictions you asked for
http://blog.sfgate.com/raiders/2012/04/18/the-schedule-storylines-and-predictions-you-asked-for/

[Randy]

Monday night at home vs the Chargless, Nutless, Boltless Chargers to start the season. I love it!
Then we finish up in their house.

Week 4 in Denver (Peyton Manning) looks interesting. Then a Thursday Night December 6th rematch in Oakland. Nice.

http://www.raiders.com/news/article-1/The-Raiders-Kickoff-2012-Season-at-Home-on-Monday-Night-Against-San-Diego/c3b94b86-0384-4e1a-abb9-d00d522432dd

http://www.nfl.com/schedules

[Matty Raider]

Just found some solid dates online for 3 of the 4 games for the upcoming preseason:

Week 1, August 13, 5pm PST: HOME vs Dallas Cowboys (ESPN)

Week 2, August 16-20, time TBA: Raiders at Arizona Cardinals

Week 3, August 25, 7pm PST: HOME vs Detroit Lions

Week 4, August 30, 7pm PST: Raiders at Seattle Seahawks

http://www.raiders.com/schedule/season-schedule.html


Can't wait for the regular season schedule to drop tonight!!!

[Randy]

NFL to announce regular-season schedule on Tuesday, April 17th at 7 p.m. ET

The season will kick off with a matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Super Bowl-champion New York Giants on Wednesday Sept. 5., to be shown on NBC at 8:30 p.m. ET.

Though the league has traditionally opened its season on Thursdays, the 2012 opener will be played on a Wednesday so as not to conflict with President Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention.

Complete story:
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d82859a69/article/nfl-to-announce-regularseason-schedule-on-tuesday-at-7-pm-et?module=HP11_breaking_news

[houston raider]

49ers in Regular season in 2014..:O)

[houston raider]

     hello,
does this mean that we will play the 49ers at the Coliseum in 2014....can't wait!!! happy we are playing the pre-season home opener against the Cowboys in PRIME TIME:O)

[Randy]

Raider Greg mentioned on today's podcast that someone apparently posted a 2012 NFL schedule on the internet that the league officials say is "bugus". I know everyone is anxious for the REAL schedule to come out....so I tried to figure out when that might be.

If the NFL repeats the pattern they've used over the last 4 years....the schedule will be released on Tuesday April 17th. I used a real scientific method to calculate this. I checked Google, and here are the dates the schedule was released on over the last 5 years. I included the source I used for each year.

The last 4 years in a row it's been on a Tuesday. In 2007 it was on a Wednesday. The earliest date of those 4 Tuesdays was April 14th, and this coming Tuesday is the 10th....so I'm making an educated guess that it will be the following Tuesday the 17th for the release. It could be released on the 10th though, you never know....but they've never done it that early before....and least not in the last 5 years. It looks like it most likely will be a Tuesday judging by these past dates.


Tuesday April 19, 2011
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/2011-NFL-regular-season-schedule-041911

Tuesday April 20, 2010
http://voices.yahoo.com/nfl-schedule-2010-released-today-full-5869374.html

Tuesday April 14, 2009
http://blog.timesunion.com/sportsmedia/2009-nfl-schedule-released/1441/

Tuesday April 15, 2008
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/10780923

Wednesday April 11, 2007
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2833348



Here are two articles about the bogus schedule:
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/04/06/league-says-leaked-regular-season-schedule-is-bogus/
http://www.nflgridirongab.com/tag/2012-bogus-nfl-schedule/


Here is an article where they try to guess the release date, like I did:
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/04/07/schedule-release-likely-coming-on-a-tuesday-but-which-one/

[Matty Raider]

Pre-Season schedule for our Raiders:

http://www.raiders.com/news/article-1/Raiders-Kickoff-Preseason-at-Home-on-National-TV-vs-Dallas-/b91b3c0e-83d0-4967-86a4-ef3899ea05f5


We got a MNF game on 8/13 versus Dallas!  I am jacked!

[Randy]

It's a shame we are not playing Tampa away next season as they are one of the teams that will be playing regular over here & it might have been us. Shame.

It's just been announced that St Louis will play at Wembley for the next 3 seasons . WTF ?

v Pats this year possibly.

how incredibly boring

Ahh, but if i've worked it out correctly we are due to play the NFC WEST in 2014 and i'm sure we are at St. Louis (we hosted them in 2010), so it could possibly be at Wembley!

Nice work Nik! Sounds promising.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[RaiderNik]

It's a shame we are not playing Tampa away next season as they are one of the teams that will be playing regular over here & it might have been us. Shame.

It's just been announced that St Louis will play at Wembley for the next 3 seasons . WTF ?

v Pats this year possibly.

how incredibly boring

Ahh, but if i've worked it out correctly we are due to play the NFC WEST in 2014 and i'm sure we are at St. Louis (we hosted them in 2010), so it could possibly be at Wembley!

[RaiderWildeStyle]

You might remember it...we had Randy Moss then and Art Shell was our HC (ugh), went up 21-0 at the half then proceeded to go scoreless in the 2nd half and lost 24-21. 

I dont remember Chuck Bresnahan being our Defensive Co-Ordinator in 2006?!?!? Oh thats right it was that fat piece of shit Rob Ryan. LOL

Who loses leading 21 nil... Damn!!!

[Raider Dee]

It's a shame we are not playing Tampa away next season as they are one of the teams that will be playing regular over here & it might have been us. Shame.

It's just been announced that St Louis will play at Wembley for the next 3 seasons . WTF ?

v Pats this year possibly.

how incredibly boring

[Matty Raider]

Why in the hell do we play MIAMI and CLEVELAND every freaking year??

Why do we play Miami and Cleveland every year? Well first of all, we don't. You got me curious, so I checked. The only years we played them both in the last 10 years were 2011, 2007, and 2005.

The schedule makers can't just pick who they want us to play, they have to use an 8-year rotating schedule that ensures that each team plays each other team at least twice every 8 years (once home and once away). The way the rotation works is every year we play all 4 teams in a certain AFC division, all 4 teams in an NFC division, the 3 teams in our division (twice each)....that makes 14 games so far.....then we play two AFC teams who finished in the same place in the standings that we did, in their divisions. These teams are chosen from the two AFC divisions who we are not scheduled to play that year. So for example, last year those teams were from the AFC North and AFC South, since we were already playing all the teams in the AFC West and AFC East.

Here is a breakdown of each year going back to 2002 that shows who we were scheduled to play in the rotation for each of those years, and why we did or did not play Miami and Cleveland each year:

2011 - Raiders played the Dolphins and the Browns

We played the Dolphins in 2011 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC East teams (Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, Bills).

We played the Browns in 2011 because we were scheduled to play the AFC North and AFC South teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2010 - 3rd place) and those were the Browns and the Texans.

2010 - Raiders played the Dolphins but not the Browns.

We played the Dolphins in 2010 because we were scheduled to play the AFC East and AFC North teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2009 - 3rd Place) and those were the Dolphins (AFC East) and Steelers (AFC North).

2009 - Browns only

We played the Browns in 2009 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC North teams (Steelers, Ravens, Browns, Bengals).


2008 - Dolphins only

We played the Browns in 2008 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC East teams (Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, Bills).


2007 - Dolphins, Browns

We played the Dolphins in 2007 because we were scheduled to play the AFC East and AFC North teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2006 - 3rd Place) and those were the Dolphins and the Browns.


2006 - Browns only

We played the Browns in 2006 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC North teams (Ravens, Steelers, Bengals, Browns).


2005 - Dolphins, Browns

We played the Dolphins in 2005 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC East teams (Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, Bills).

We played the Browns in 2005 because we were scheduled to play the AFC North and AFC South teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2004 - 4rd Place) and those were the Browns and the Titans.


2004 - Neither

We didn't play either team (Dolphins or Browns) in 2004 because we were scheduled to play the AFC South (Titans, Colts, Texans, Jaguars) and NFC South (Panthers, Saints, Bucs, Falcons), plus the two teams in the AFC North and East who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2003 - 3rd Place) Those were the Steelers and the Bills.


2003 - Browns only

We played the Browns in 2003 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC North teams (Ravens, Bengals, Steelers, Browns).


2002 - Neither



NFL ROTATION:

In addition to playing our three AFC West division opponents each year, once home and once away, here are the other teams we were/are scheduled to play in the rotation. I wasn't able to find a schedule that went beyond 2013.


2002: AFC East, NFC West

2003: AFC North, NFC North

2004: AFC South, NFC South

2005: AFC East, NFC East

2006: AFC North, NFC West

2007: AFC South, NFC North

2008: AFC East, NFC South

2009: AFC North, NFC East

2010: AFC South, NFC West

2011: AFC East, NFC North

2012: AFC North, NFC South (plus one team in AFC East and AFC South who finished in same place as 2011 Raiders)

2013: AFC South, NFC East (plus one team in AFC North and AFC East who finish in same place as 2012 Raiders)



http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d81d70273/article/2011-teambyteam-opponents

http://www.johnnyroadtrip.com/schedules/nfl_future_afcn.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Football_League_regular_season

Wow, you outdid yourself Randy

Thanks for the info.  I knew there was a rotation, I was just commenting how it always ends up we play Cleveland and Miami.  In fact, you can find sites where they outlay the prospective opponents for all 32 NFL teams for the next few years, leaving the last two games (opponents assigned on how the team finishes).

My one and only trip to the Coliseum was in 2006................and I saw them LOSE to the Browns

You might remember it...we had Randy Moss then and Art Shell was our HC (ugh), went up 21-0 at the half then proceeded to go scoreless in the 2nd half and lost 24-21. 

Anyway, if we are going to play them often we might as well learn how to beat 'em because it seems Miami beats us consistently and Cleveland ALWAYS plays us tough.

[Randy]

Why in the hell do we play MIAMI and CLEVELAND every freaking year??

Why do we play Miami and Cleveland every year? Well first of all, we don't. You got me curious, so I checked. The only years we played them both in the last 10 years were 2011, 2007, and 2005.

The schedule makers can't just pick who they want us to play, they have to use an 8-year rotating schedule that ensures that each team plays each other team at least twice every 8 years (once home and once away). The way the rotation works is every year we play all 4 teams in a certain AFC division, all 4 teams in an NFC division, the 3 teams in our division (twice each)....that makes 14 games so far.....then we play two AFC teams who finished in the same place in the standings that we did, in their divisions. These teams are chosen from the two AFC divisions who we are not scheduled to play that year. So for example, last year those teams were from the AFC North and AFC South, since we were already playing all the teams in the AFC West and AFC East.

Here is a breakdown of each year going back to 2002 that shows who we were scheduled to play in the rotation for each of those years, and why we did or did not play Miami and Cleveland each year:

2011 - Raiders played the Dolphins and the Browns

We played the Dolphins in 2011 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC East teams (Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, Bills).

We played the Browns in 2011 because we were scheduled to play the AFC North and AFC South teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2010 - 3rd place) and those were the Browns and the Texans.

2010 - Raiders played the Dolphins but not the Browns.

We played the Dolphins in 2010 because we were scheduled to play the AFC East and AFC North teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2009 - 3rd Place) and those were the Dolphins (AFC East) and Steelers (AFC North).

2009 - Browns only

We played the Browns in 2009 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC North teams (Steelers, Ravens, Browns, Bengals).


2008 - Dolphins only

We played the Browns in 2008 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC East teams (Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, Bills).


2007 - Dolphins, Browns

We played the Dolphins in 2007 because we were scheduled to play the AFC East and AFC North teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2006 - 3rd Place) and those were the Dolphins and the Browns.


2006 - Browns only

We played the Browns in 2006 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC North teams (Ravens, Steelers, Bengals, Browns).


2005 - Dolphins, Browns

We played the Dolphins in 2005 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC East teams (Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, Bills).

We played the Browns in 2005 because we were scheduled to play the AFC North and AFC South teams who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2004 - 4rd Place) and those were the Browns and the Titans.


2004 - Neither

We didn't play either team (Dolphins or Browns) in 2004 because we were scheduled to play the AFC South (Titans, Colts, Texans, Jaguars) and NFC South (Panthers, Saints, Bucs, Falcons), plus the two teams in the AFC North and East who finished in the same place as the Raiders the previous year (2003 - 3rd Place) Those were the Steelers and the Bills.


2003 - Browns only

We played the Browns in 2003 because it was our turn in the rotation to play all the AFC North teams (Ravens, Bengals, Steelers, Browns).


2002 - Neither



NFL ROTATION:

In addition to playing our three AFC West division opponents each year, once home and once away, here are the other teams we were/are scheduled to play in the rotation. I wasn't able to find a schedule that went beyond 2013.


2002: AFC East, NFC West

2003: AFC North, NFC North

2004: AFC South, NFC South

2005: AFC East, NFC East

2006: AFC North, NFC West

2007: AFC South, NFC North

2008: AFC East, NFC South

2009: AFC North, NFC East

2010: AFC South, NFC West

2011: AFC East, NFC North

2012: AFC North, NFC South (plus one team in AFC East and AFC South who finished in same place as 2011 Raiders)

2013: AFC South, NFC East (plus one team in AFC North and AFC East who finish in same place as 2012 Raiders)



http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d81d70273/article/2011-teambyteam-opponents

http://www.johnnyroadtrip.com/schedules/nfl_future_afcn.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Football_League_regular_season

[raider kyle]

Why in the hell do we play MIAMI and CLEVELAND every freaking year??

Because we either finish last in the division like they do or third.

[Big Raider Dave]

It's a shame we are not playing Tampa away next season as they are one of the teams that will be playing regular over here & it might have been us. Shame.

[Matty Raider]

Why in the hell do we play MIAMI and CLEVELAND every freaking year??

[RaiderWildeStyle]

It's about time the NFL brought The Raiders over to Wembley for a game in this UK Raider fans opinion. 

looking at the list , an away game @ Wembley against Miami or Cincinnati isn't out of the question

Maybe Miami...

But the Cincinatti game is too important for Mike Brown to give up... It will be return of Carson Palmer to Cincinatti and Mike Brown will need to have extra staff on as it might sell out. (I think Cincinatti game might be primetime.. 2 teams that were legitimate playoff contenders in 2011)

[Raider Dee]

It's about time the NFL brought The Raiders over to Wembley for a game in this UK Raider fans opinion. 

looking at the list , an away game @ Wembley against Miami or Cincinnati isn't out of the question