The Giants have a big schedule disadvantage, but no one should feel bad for them

The New York Giants’ 2017 schedule features some significant disadvantages. The G-Men have to play a total of four teams coming off bye weeks this upcoming season. ESPN also notes New York will have a “net total of minus-22 days of rest compared to their opponents” which is the worst in the NFL. These inconveniences have led to an outcry.

There’s no denying the Giants are at a disadvantage. But the truth is ... no one should really feel bad about that.

Now, coming from a Philadelphia Eagles writer, you probably wouldn’t expect me to say anything otherwise. But there are some other good reasons to not feel bad for the Giants.

The first is that the Eagles totally got hosed last season. Philadelphia had to play three straight teams coming off their bye weeks, including two road games against division opponents. The Giants won’t play any division opponents coming off their bye. One of those games the Giants play is also a week where New York is coming off their own bye, so that kind of evens out. And the Giants only have two games in a row where their opponents are coming off a bye. I didn’t even mention the fact that after the Eagles played those three teams coming off bye weeks in 2016, they also had to play the Falcons coming off extra rest in the fourth week. But I didn’t see any national outrage when the Eagles got screwed last season.

The second thing is that the Giants have been very fortunate with scheduling in the past. As Jimmy Kempski notes:

In addition, the Giants play a fake “away” game each time they go up against the New York Jets “on the road” in their own stadium.

Making the NFL schedule seems like a pretty difficult process when you have to factor in a bunch of considerations. Some teams are always going to get screwed, just like the Eagles were last year. The Giants aren’t even getting as hosed as badly as Philadelphia was in 2016. The Giants can complain if they want to, but no one should feel bad for them.