Early strength of schedule ranking proves Saints should be considered favorites this year

The New Orleans Saints finished the 2023 season with a 9-8 record, which wasn't enough to get them the NFC South title. This was despite them having one of the easiest schedules in the league last year.

Well, they have a chance to redeem themselves this year, as they'll once again be boasting one of the easiest schedules in the league in 2024. According to Warren Sharp, only four teams have an easier schedule than New Orleans this year and those teams are the Falcons, Chargers, Bears, and Jets.

The bad news is that the Falcons have the easiest schedule next season. Considering they were aggressive this offseason in adding Kirk Cousins to an already decent roster, that bodes well for Atlanta. That being said, the Saints can still make the playoffs even if the Falcons win the division by way of the wild card so that's not the end of the world.

Saints have one of the easiest schedules in 2024

Last year didn't go according to plan for the Saints even with their "easier" schedule. The team did start winning down the road but it was too little too late and the Bucs managed to win the division for the third straight year.

Winning the division would be nice but the Saints simply getting to the playoffs would be a win for this franchise. They haven't been to the playoffs since the 2020 season and it's time to end that drought. Fortunately, the chances of them doing that are increased with their simpler schedule. Let's hope things go better for the black and gold this time around.