Each spring, on the heels of the annual NFL schedule release, comes the strength of schedule breakdown for each team throughout the league.
Ahead of the launch of the 2016 NFL season, the schedules for the San Francisco 49ers and Atlanta Falcons have both been deemed the league's toughest, while on the other end of the spectrum, the Green Bay Packers boast the easiest regular-season slate.
Note: Strength of schedule is calculated using 2015 regular-season records
So, what does it mean for ticket prices? Using our NFL ticket prices data pull as a guide, we took a look at the strength of schedule for each team's 2016 home schedule and compared it to its median price when competing at home (or as the host team in the case of International Series games).
Highlights
*The Oakland Raiders are considered to have the toughest home schedule, though rank in the middle of the pack at No. 15 for home median price ($174)
*The Seattle Seahawks top the list in median ticket price ($398) and are tied for the seventh toughest home slate
*The Kansas City Chiefs have both the easiest home schedule and lowest median ticket price for home games ($91)
| SOS Rank | Team | SOS | Median Price | Median Price Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oakland Raiders | 0.586 | $174 | 15 |
| 2 | Denver Broncos | 0.578 | $145 | 3 |
| T-3 | New Orleans Saints | 0.563 | $335 | 18 |
| T-3 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 0.563 | $156 | T-23 |
| T-5 | Atlanta Falcons | 0.555 | $131 | T-23 |
| T-5 | Los Angeles Rams | 0.555 | $131 | 7 |
| T-7 | San Francisco 49ers | 0.539 | $235 | T-13 |
| T-7 | Seattle Seahawks | 0.539 | $175 | 1 |
| 9 | New York Jets | 0.531 | $398 | 21 |
| 10 | New England Patriots | 0.523 | $351 | 2 |
| T-11 | Arizona Cardinals | 0.516 | $140 | 22 |
| T-11 | Washington Redskins | 0.516 | $196 | 11 |
| T-13 | Carolina Panthers | 0.508 | $158 | 17 |
| T-13 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 0.508 | $148 | 31 |
| T-13 | Tennessee Titans | 0.508 | $100 | 20 |
| T-16 | Buffalo Bills | 0.500 | $118 | 27 |
| T-16 | Miami Dolphins | 0.500 | $170 | 16 |
| T-18 | Cleveland Browns | 0.492 | $233 | 29 |
| T-18 | Minnesota Vikings | 0.492 | $110 | 8 |
| T-18 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 0.492 | $244 | 6 |
| 21 | Baltimore Ravens | 0.484 | $175 | T-13 |
| T-22 | Green Bay Packers | 0.477 | $129 | 4 |
| T-22 | Philadelphia Eagles | 0.477 | $195 | 12 |
| 24 | Cincinnati Bengals | 0.469 | $201 | T-25 |
| T-25 | Dallas Cowboys | 0.453 | $294 | 10 |
| T-25 | Detroit Lions | 0.453 | $114 | 28 |
| T-27 | Chicago Bears | 0.445 | $129 | 5 |
| T-27 | New York Giants | 0.445 | $208 | 9 |
| T-27 | San Diego Chargers | 0.445 | $150 | T-25 |
| 30 | Houston Texans | 0.438 | $275 | 19 |
| 31 | Indianapolis Colts | 0.430 | $106 | 30 |
| 32 | Kansas City Chiefs | 0.422 | $91 | 32 |