In the 2025 season the Saints will host 8 home games. Other teams are set to host 9 home games. How The NFL Regulates 9 vs. 8 Home Games..
The process determines which teams get 9 home games and which get only 8 each season. This system is designed for fairness and rotates annually between the two conferences.
Each NFL team plays 17 regular-season games and one bye week. To balance the odd number of games, teams alternate seasons hosting either 9 home games and 1 preseason game or 8 home games and 2 preseason games.
In 2025, AFC teams will host 9 regular-season home games, while NFC teams will host 8. This alternates yearly; in 2024, NFC teams had 9 home games.
The formula for determining opponents is fixed:
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6 games against division opponents (3 home, 3 away)
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4 games against another division in the same conference (2 home, 2 away)
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4 games against a division in the other conference (2 home, 2 away)
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2 games against teams from the remaining divisions in the same conference (1 home, 1 away)
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1 additional interconference game (the 17th game), with the home team determined by the annual rotation
This system ensures every franchise has a balanced schedule over a two-year span, alternating the extra home game between the AFC and NFC.
New Advanced Technology for Accurate Ball Spotting
The NFL is also adopting new technology. Sony’s Hawk-Eye technology has been selected to measure first downs, replacing the traditional chain gang.
The Hawk-Eye uses six 8k cameras to improve the accuracy of ball spotting during games.
This system aims to reduce human error and make first down measurements more reliable. The adoption of such technology is part of the NFL’s broader push to leverage data and analytics for fairer gameplay and officiating