Clayton: The Broncos got some breaks with the NFL’s 17-game schedule

The NFL announced on Tuesday that they were expanding to a 17-game regular season, beginning with the 2021 campaign. That meant that every team needed an opponent added to their schedule, as the other 16 were pre-determined by the league’s tried-and-true formula.

For the added game, the AFC West will be matched up against the NFC North. The matchups are determined by where the team finishes in the division. Because the Broncos were a fourth-place team last year, they will play the Detroit Lions, who were 5-11 last year and finished fourth in the NFL North.

Denver already is slated to play two other fourth-place teams, as they’ll play the Jets at home and the Jaguars on the road. Adding a third cellar-dweller to the ledger certainly doesn’t hurt.

Another break is that the Broncos-Lions game will be played in Denver. They will have nine home games and eight on the road in 2021.

Contrast that to the rest of the AFC West and it’s clear that the Broncos were the beneficiaries of the added game.

The Kansas City Chiefs play the Green Bay Packers, a 13-win team last season. The Las Vegas Raiders host the Chicago Bears, a playoff team. And the Los Angeles Chargers get the Minnesota Vikings, a franchise that has been competitive the past few seasons.

Before the increase to a 17th game, the Broncos were tied with the Buffalo Bills for the ninth easiest schedule in football, based on last year’s records. They were slated to play teams with combined records of 122-132-2, a .480 percentage.

Adding Detroit takes them down to a .467 percentage. That ties them with the Carolina Panthers for what is now the second easiest schedule in the league. The Philadelphia Eagles have the easiest at .430.

Carolina and the Dever jumped Atlanta, Miami, New Orleans, the New York Giants, Indianapolis, Dallas and Tampa Bay, who had easier schedules under the 16-game model.

Another advantage for the Broncos is the quarterbacks they get to play with their improved secondary. If the Jets trade Sam Darnold, the Broncos would most likely face a rookie QB in that game, whether it’s Zach Wilson or Trey Lance. They will get Trevor Lawrence in the Jaguars game. The Broncos play against the AFC North and the NFC East, so they get young quarterbacks such as Joe Burrow, Daniel Jones and Jalen Hurst. Now, they’ll add Jared Goff to the mix.

The Broncos beefed up their secondary adding cornerbacks Ronald Darby and Kyle Fuller and bringing back Kareem Jackson. They could create a lot of problems for these young quarterbacks and it might get tougher if Von Miller returns to his old form rushing the quarterback.