2024 NFL strength of schedule for all 32 teams: Sorry, Browns fans
When it comes to the 2024 NFL schedule, no one has it tougher than the AFC North.
That division was the first in more than 50 years to have each of its teams finish with a winning record, eventually pushing the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers to the playoffs. Since those teams all get home-and-home matchups with each other every fall, it means the AFC North is home to the three hardest schedules in the NFL this season.
Leading the way is the Browns, whose opponents won a combined 158 games in 2023. Not far behind are the Ravens and Steelers. The Cincinnati Bengals, who get to match up with the other division basement dwellers across the AFC, clock in right in the middle of that curve thanks to games against the New England Patriots, Denver Broncos, Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers.
Of course, the schedules that look the most difficult in the offseason rarely turn out that way in real life. Clubs like the Buffalo Bills, New Orleans Saints and Jacksonville Jaguars could backslide. Rising teams like the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals and (maybe) the New York Jets will be tougher outs than their 2023 records suggest.
But we can’t predict the future; we can only look backward and look at trends from there. Based on how every team performed in 2023, here’s 2024’s toughest schedules, from the Browns all the way down to the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints