As noted in Alex Mann's FanPost not long ago, we know what teams the Arizona Cardinals will be playing in the 2012 season. Next season the Cards will play the NFC North and AFC East divisions, likely giving Arizona pretty tough set of games. Obviously we expect the team to have improved, so hoping for a playoff team should not be considered out of the question. Looking ahead, see if you can put together a schedule that looks the best at helping the team out and getting them lined up for as many wins as possible.
Based on what we know so far, here is what the Cards 2012 schedule looks like:
Home: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, San Francisco 49ers,St. Louis Rams, Seattle Seahawks, and an NFC East Opponent (As of today it is the Philadelphia Eagles since they have the closest record to us.)
Away: Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, New York Jets, San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams, Seattle Seahawks, and an NFC South Opponent (As of today it is the Carolina Panthers.)
Half of the Cards' road games are in cities that could potentially have bad weather. Knowing that, you can bet that the team would like to get those games lined up earlier in the season.
Here is what I would put together for Arizona:
1. Rams
2. At Packers
3. At Seahawks
4. Dolphins
5. Bears
6. At Patriots
7. At 49ers
8. Eagles
9. At Jets
10. At Vikings
11. At Rams
12. Bills
13. Lions
14. Seahawks
15. At Panthers
16. 49ers
The schedule starts and ends at home, keeps cold weather teams before the winter and a potentially big game in the last week.
What do you think? What would you set up as the Cardinals' ideal schedule, based on the known opponents they will have?