Jets, Giants face challenging schedules
New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan, right, shakes hands with New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin after an NFL football game. (Dec. 24, 2011) Credit: AP
The Jets figure to find out early in the 2014 season just how good they are. They'll face five playoff teams from last season in their first nine games.
That includes a Week 2 matchup in Green Bay and games against the Chargers, Broncos and Patriots in Weeks 5-7. The Week 7 game against the Pats, a Thursday night affair, will feature former Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis.
The Jets have Monday night games against the Bears in Week 3 and against the Dolphins (Week 13).
Three of the Jets' first four games are at home, but they finish with three of four away from MetLife Stadium. "Clearly, we have to make big strides on how we play on the road,'' Rex Ryan said.
And what about playing the Patriots on a Thursday after facing the Broncos, the defending AFC champions? "That's a huge challenge,'' Ryan said. "That isn't ideal.''
The Jets' bye is Week 11.
The Giants start with a Monday nighter at Detroit, then host Arizona and Houston before a Thursday night game at Washington. After a Week 5 home game against the Falcons, the Giants face 2013 playoff teams Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Super Bowl champion Seattle and San Francisco from Weeks 6-11. Their bye is in Week 8.
After that tough stretch, the Giants face five consecutive teams -- Dallas, Jacksonville, Tennessee, Washington and St. Louis -- that missed the playoffs. Week 17 is a home game against the Eagles.
The Giants will be a fixture in prime time, with five games in the national spotlight. Besides facing the Lions and Redskins on the road, they visit the Eagles in Week 6 on Sunday night, host the Colts on Monday in Week 9, then host Dallas on Sunday night in Week 12.
"It's a difficult and challenging schedule,'' Tom Coughlin said. "We play a lot of very good teams, some that we haven't played for a while.
"We do have any number of outstanding games in a row, in addition to the NFC East, also the NFC West and AFC South. The NFC West is very strong. Seattle won the Super Bowl, San Francisco played in the NFC Championship Game, you look at the improvement in Arizona . . . and the way St. Louis' defense has played.''
The Seahawks open at home against the Packers on a Thursday. In 2012, their game in Seattle was decided on a disputed call by replacement officials. Seattle was awarded a touchdown on what replays showed was a Green Bay interception in the end zone.
Peyton Manning, whom the Seahawks demolished in the Super Bowl, gets a chance for revenge in Seattle in Week 3.
