It takes a lot for an NFL team to win 14 games in a regular season. The feat has only been accomplished 36 times since 1948. Of course, the NFL schedule only had 14 games (or less) on it until the 1978 season, but there’s still been almost 50 years of at least 16-game seasons, and this is the fifth year of 17-game schedules.
Still, only 36 times have teams reached 14 wins. In 1984, 1986, 2004 and 2022, there were two teams which won at least 14 games. Just once has there been a season that had three teams win at least 14 games, in 1998 when the Denver Broncos won 15 games while the Minnesota Vikings and Arizona Cardinals both won 14 contests. But 2024 was the only time four squads won at least 14 games.
The Dallas Cowboys face all of them in 2025, and not only do they face all four of these juggernauts, the NFL schedule makers are torturing Jerry Jones and making Dallas play them all in consecutive weeks.
Not only do the Cowboys have to do this, but it all begins with a short week, with the Cowboys facing the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday night in Week 11, a road game at that. So they’ll return to Dallas early on Tuesday morning, have six days to prepare for the world-champion 14-win Eagles, and then just four days to prepare for the 15-win Chiefs on Thanksgiving Day.
Then, instead of getting the obligatory mini-bye after a Thursday game, they instead will follow their new tradition of having a game on the following Thursday night, traveling to face the 15-win Lions. Then, they’ll get their mini-bye before taking on the 14-win Vikings on Sunday Night Football.
Things don’t get easier, as they’ll then face two more playoff teams, with their Week 16 home game against the 11-win Los Angeles Chargers, only to have a short week to prepare for the 12-win Washington Commanders on another Thursday game, this one on Christmas.
Whatever Jerry Jones did to the NFL office, he needs to drop to both knees and beg for forgiveness.
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys to face toughest 4-game stretch in NFL history in 2025, schedule released
Reporting by K.D. Drummond, Cowboys Wire / Cowboys Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
