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          New England Patriots

          Early prime-time flavor on New England Patriots' schedule

          Jim O'Connor/USA TODAY Sports
          • Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff WriterApr 15, 2016, 12:00 AM
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              Mike Reiss is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the New England Patriots. Reiss has covered the Patriots since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2009. In 2019, he was named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. You can follow Reiss on Twitter at @MikeReiss.
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          Breakdown: Two of the first three games -- Week 1 at Arizona on Sunday, Sept. 11, and Week 3 vs. Houston on Thursday, Sept. 22 -- will be in prime time and reflect how the Patriots continue to be a major national draw (there are five overall prime-time games). Questions remain if quarterback Tom Brady will be available for the opener, pending the NFL’s appeal in court of his four-game suspension pending. The opener against the Cardinals also means that the Patriots will face their 2012 first-round draft choice, defensive end Chandler Jones, as early as possible after trading him in March. The Week 9 bye falls at a nice time for the team, especially compared to the Week 4 bye last year.

          Three-game stretch in December stands out: After hosting the Ravens in Week 14 on Monday, Dec. 12, the Patriots travel to face the Broncos on Sunday, Dec. 18. Then they return home to welcome the Jets on Saturday, Dec. 24. That’s three games in 13 days against clubs that traditionally play them tough. That stretch, coupled with October being a month to get familiar with the AFC North with back-to-back-to-back games against at the Browns (Oct. 9), versus the Bengals (Oct. 16) and at the Steelers (Oct. 23), stands out.

          No long stay out West: With road games against Arizona, San Francisco and Denver, the Patriots had hoped that two of them would be paired together, which would open the possibility of limiting travel and spending a week on the road, as they’ve done in the past. But the schedule didn’t unfold that way for the Patriots, who will rack up some more frequent-flier miles in 2016.

          Strength of schedule: ninth, .523

          Patriots Regular-Season Schedule (All times Eastern)

          • Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 11, at Arizona, 8:30 p.m.

          • Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 18, Miami, 1 p.m.

          • Week 3: Thursday, Sept. 22, Houston, 8:25 p.m.

          • Week 4: Sunday, Oct. 2, Buffalo, 1 p.m.

          • Week 5: Sunday, Oct. 9, at Cleveland, 1 p.m.

          • Week 6: Sunday, Oct. 16, Cincinnati, 1 p.m.

          • Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 23, at Pittsburgh, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 8: Sunday, Oct. 30, at Buffalo, 1 p.m.

          • Week 9: BYE

          • Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 13, Seattle, 8:30 p.m.

          • Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 20, at San Francisco, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 12: Sunday, Nov. 27, at NY Jets, 8:30 p.m.

          • Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 4, Los Angeles, 1 p.m.

          • Week 14: Monday, Dec. 12, Baltimore, 8:30 p.m.

          • Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 18, at Denver, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 16: Saturday, Dec. 24, NY Jets, 1 p.m.

          • Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 1, at Miami, 1 p.m.