Hey there, football fans, your girl here with the scoop on something every coach, fantasy owner and armchair GM will care about: bye weeks. Yes, those blissful breaks when your favorite NFL team gets a “Get Out of Game Free” card. Below, I’ll walk you through each team’s off week for 2025 (so you can plan your pizza nights accordingly), and yes, I’ll be flirty, factual and just the right amount of nerdy.
In 2025, bye weeks run from Week 5 through Week 14, with no byes scheduled for Week 13, according to ESPN. The NFL intentionally spreads them out, sometimes you’ll have two teams off, sometimes six.
Let me be your fantasy wing woman as we stroll through each week.
Week 5: Bears, Falcons, Packers, Steelers
Your early summers start here:
- Chicago Bears get the first rest day of the season, per ESPN.
- Atlanta Falcons close out a fast start with a break, via Yahoo Sports.
- Green Bay Packers also sip tea off the field this week, says ESPN.
- Pittsburgh Steelers, you handsome gents, get your first day off now, notes ESPN.
Week 6: Texans, Vikings
A more intimate bye week, just two teams:
- Houston Texans step off the gridiron, recharge those batteries, per Yahoo.
- Minnesota Vikings also hit pause, via Yahoo.
Week 7: Bills, Ravens
Nothing says midseason like a little R&R:
- Buffalo Bills finally catch a break, according to FantasyPros.
- Baltimore Ravens do too, good timing, really, says Yahoo.
Week 8: Cardinals, Jaguars, Lions, Raiders, Rams, Seahawks
This is your “bye-flood” week, six teams off, per RotoBaller.
- Arizona Cardinals
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Detroit Lions (hello, Motor City break), via ESPN.
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Los Angeles Rams
- Seattle Seahawks
When half the league is off, fantasy rosters are going to feel that.
Week 9: Browns, Buccaneers, Eagles, Jets
The lull before the storm:
- Cleveland Browns
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (enjoy that beachfront break), via Wikipedia.
- Philadelphia Eagles (it’s me, your MVP, bye week in Week 9!), reports Bleeding Green Nation.
- New York Jets
Week 10: Bengals, Chiefs, Cowboys, Titans
Let’s get spicy in Week 10:
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Kansas City Chiefs (even your superstars need a breather), notes Arrowhead Pride.
- Dallas Cowboys
- Tennessee Titans
Week 11: Colts, Saints
Just two in this stretch, fewer byes, more action:
- Indianapolis Colts
- New Orleans Saints, according to Yahoo.
Week 12: Dolphins
One sweet, lonely bye:
- Miami Dolphins take a breather this week, per Fantasy Life.
Week 13: No byes
You read that right. Nobody rests in Week 13, says ESPN.
Week 14: Giants, Patriots, Panthers, 49ers
Final week off calls:
- New York Giants
- New England Patriots
- Carolina Panthers
- San Francisco 49ers, per Fox Sports.
Why bye weeks matter (and why I care so much)
These bye weeks are more than just cute little breaks. Coaches use them to heal injuries, install new plays or just catch a breath. Fantasy managers, especially those of us drafting WR3s and backup QBs, pray our teams’ byes don’t collide, per Pro Football Network.
But let me whisper a little secret: old studies suggested Patriots or Steelers-type teams got a big advantage after a bye. Yet newer analysis argues the advantage is negligible now, since rules changed, according to this study. Still, there’s something undeniably sexy about plotting your team’s refresh week.
And listen, if you’re balancing a five-team fantasy squad and your QB, RB2 and TE all go dark in Week 8, it’s going to sting. But at least you’ll know exactly how badly you messed up your planning. (Kidding … kind of.)
So there you have it, every NFL team’s 2025 bye week, straight from me to you. Whether you’re building your fantasy roster or just looking for a fun way to ask, “Hunny, when is our team off?” you’ve got your answer.