NFC West squad to lead NFL in travel mileage for 2023-24

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NFC West squad to lead NFL in miles traveled during upcoming season

Originally posted on Sportsnaut | By Vincent Frank | Last updated 5/10/23

The schedule for the 2023 NFL season will be released on Thursday, but we already known the 17 matchups for all 32 teams -- and where those games will be played. We also know the dates for the league's upcoming International Series, which were announced earlier on Wednesday.

With this structure already known, Boston Herald columnist Bill Speros has broken down how much each team will travel during the 17-game slate for the 2023-24 NFL season.

The Seattle Seahawks (31,600 miles and 36 different time zones) rank atop this not-so-friendly list, with NFC West rival San Francisco 49ers (29,958 miles and 36 time zones) facing an only slightly-less-daunting travel schedule. Of note, neither of these two teams are playing international games in 2023.

The Miami Dolphins (27,110 miles), Los Angeles Rams (26,332 miles) and Los Angeles Chargers (26,102) round out the top five.

The Seattle Seahawks will have games in the Eastern Time Zone against the Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens, New York Giants and Detroit Lions. Seattle’s trip to Jersey is north of 5,700 miles round trip.

Meanwhile, the defending NFC West champion San Francisco 49ers will have five games in the Eastern Time Zone, including outings against the Washington Commanders, Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, Philadelphia Eagles and Jacksonville Jaguars.

On the other side of the travel ledger, the Cincinnati Bengals will travel the least of any team in the NFL, logging just 11,942 miles, while the Green Bay Packers rank second-to-last with 11,956 miles.

Historically, teams playing on the West Coast travel more than their counterparts. With five of the top seven travel outfits for 2023-24 either in the Mountain or Pacific time zones, that will indeed be the case during the 2023 NFL season.

What travel tells us about the 2023 NFL season

Of the five teams that traveled the most last season, three earned a spot in the NFL playoffs. The Seahawks also topped last season's list with 29,446 total miles traveled, but earned a surprise postseason appearance behind quarterback Geno Smith, who won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award.

The Denver Broncos ranked second, with far less success. They struggled in future Hall of Famer Russell Wilson’s first season with the team. Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars came in third and like Seattle, earned a surprise trip to the postseason. And the Miami Dolphins traveled the fourth-most miles under then-first-year head coach Mike McDaniel and also made a trip to the playoffs.

Of the five teams that traveled the fewest miles, only the Baltimore Ravens earned a spot in the playoffs.

This article first appeared on Sportsnaut and was syndicated with permission.

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