Some teams get a harder schedule because it’s based on the success of the team the previous season. 

First, each team plays their 3 divisions rivals. In this case the Patriots played NYJ, BUFF and MIA six times. Then the NFL rotates two divisions each 4 years. This year, the Patriots played the AFC West (DEN, KC, LAC, and OAK) and the NFL South (ATL, NO, CAR, and TB). Finally, depending on where the team finished the previous season, they’ll play the team that finished in the same spot for the two remaining conference divisions they don’t play in a particular year. The Patriots finished in 1st in 2016, so they played the division winner for the AFC South (HOU) and the divisions winner for the AFC North (PITT).  The thought behind it Teams should be able to rise quicker because they are thought to be playing teams of similar skill level from the previous season. If a team plays in a lousy division, that’s 6 easy games for a team. Hope this helps a little. It was a lengthy post.