2021 NFL schedule release date, leaks, strength of schedule and more

The 2021 NFL schedule will be released tomorrow night, Wednesday, May 12th at 8 pm (EST) on the NFL Network.

The NFL schedule release will be part of the three-hour ‘Schedule Release 21’ show which will feature guests such as:

Play-by-play announcers Jim Nantz (CBS), Al Michaels (NBC) & Joe Buck (FOX)
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford
Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy
Los Angeles Chargers head coach Brandon Staley
Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David
Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker

For the first time, the 2021 NFL season will feature 17 regular-season games and three preseason games. The 17th game will feature teams from opposing conferences that finished in the same place within their division the previous season, with the AFC as the home conference for the 17th game in 2021.

2021 NFL schedule leaks

NFL’s schedule release is Wednesday night on ESPN. NFL season scheduled to kickoff Thurs, Sept. 9, with the regular season running through Sun, Jan. 9, 2022. The defending Super-Bowl champion Bucs are expected to host the Thursday night opener on Sept. 9 in Raymond James Stadium.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 11, 2021

NFL schedule leaks

ESPN’s NFL insider Adam Schefter tweeted that defending NFL champions the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are expected to kick off the 2021 regular season on Thursday, September 9th.

In March, Steelers owner Art Rooney II inadvertently leaked the new 17 games regular season plan for 2021 on a call with Steelers fans.

While dates have yet to be set for each of the 32 teams' matchups, we have a good idea as to who is playing who in the 2021 season. The formula the NFL uses is as follows:

Home and away against its three division opponents (Six games)
The four teams from another division within its conference on a rotating three-year cycle (Four games)
The four teams from a division in the other conference on a rotating four-year cycle (Four games)
Two intraconference games based on the prior year’s standings (these games match a first-place team against the first-place teams in the two same-conference divisions the team is not scheduled to play that season) (Two games)
One interconference game based on the prior year's standings on a rotating four-year cycle. These games match a first-place team from one division against a first-place team in an opposite conference division that the team is not scheduled to play that season. The second-place, third-place and fourth-place teams in each division are similarly paired. The home conference for this game will rotate each season.

NFL strength of schedule

Who has the toughest/easiest schedule next season!?

The rankings for the 2021 strength of schedule ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/Oj8HV2OG8y
— NFL (@NFL) April 4, 2021

The NFL strength of schedule is the combined record of all teams in a schedule, and the strength of victory is the combined record of all teams that were beaten in that schedule.

The Pittsburgh Steelers, coming off a 12-4 season, have the most difficult NFL schedule to navigate in 2021, with their opponents' 2020 win percentage at .574.

The other Pennsylvania franchise, the Philadelphia Eagles, has the easiest schedule for 2021. Their opponents' 2020 winning percentage sits at .451.

You can see all 32 NFL teams strength of schedule here.