Explaining Why Eagles Passing On A Post-London Bye Week Benefits Quest Towards NFC East Title

The Eagles passing on a post-London bye week makes sense

Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

There were plenty of interesting aspects on the Philadelphia Eagles schedule that raised some eyebrows.

Before the full schedule was released, the Eagles already knew they were playing in London. They even were aware of the week (Week 5) and the date (October 11). This is part of the NFL's plan to essentially have a team play an International Series game ever two years.

Since the Eagles knew they were playing in London (and the week they were playing the game), they had the option to have their bye week the following week (Week 6). That would give the Eagles a week to recover following the London trip before grinding into the meat of their schedule.

The Eagles passed, opting to have the bye week later in the year. Their bye week will be in Week 10, which actually benefits them in the long run.

The Eagles wanted the later bye week

The Eagles prefer to have their bye week towards the middle of the year. They had an early bye week two years ago (Week 5), but that involved ending the season with 13 straight regular season games. For Nick Sirianni, it was a blessing in disguise the Eagles had the No. 2 seed locked in heading into Week 18 as he could rest the majority of his starters to prepare for the playoffs. That worked out for the Eagles, as they ended up winning the Super Bowl.

In most years under Sirianni, the Eagles had a midseason bye week. The 2021 and 2024 season were the exceptions, as the Eagles had a Week 14 bye in 2021 (Sirianni's first season) and Week 5 bye in 2024.

The other years? Week 7 (2022), Week 10 (2023), and Week 9 (2025).

The Eagles got another midseason bye with Week 10 again, and the NFL rewarded them with 44 days of not getting on a flight after the London trip. Asking for a later bye -- and declining a post-London bye -- has its dividends.

Eagles were rewarded with forgiving home slate

Once the Eagles get back from London, they'll play four home games over the six weeks. Including the Week 10 bye, that's five weeks they'll be in Philadelphia over the next six weeks.

That isn't even the most favorable home slate the rest of the way. The Eagles get three consecutive home games in Week 14 through 16, even though it's three games in a span of 11 days -- all on different days of the week.

From Week 6 through 16, the Eagles only have three road games -- at Washington (Week 8), at Dallas (Week 12 on Thanksgiving), and at Arizona (Week 13). Washington is a train ride and Arizona is 10 days after Dallas. The only challenging road game -- in terms of travel -- is Dallas on a short week.

Over the next 11 weeks -- including the bye -- the Eagles are in Philadelphia eight times. The Eagles can go on a serious run towards the division title during this stretch.

The London trip won't be long anyway

This won't be a vacation for the Eagles, as they won't be heading to London early in the week and practicing all week there. When the Eagles went to Brazil two years ago, they flew to Sao Paulo on Wednesday night for a Friday night game.

The Eagles had a team walkthrough at the stadium on Thursday and played the game Friday night, heading back on Saturday. The trip was a business trip, which London will be the same things.

Don't be surprised if the Eagles leave on Friday and have a walkthrough at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday. They'll play the game in Sunday and head home, knowing there will be a game in Week 6 against the Panthers.

This is just a regular week for the Eagles, no special occasion for the International Series. They got this game out of the way and can focus on the NFC East title and the No. 1 seed in the conference the rest of the way.

The only disadvantage is a big one

The Eagles do have a major schedule disadvantage in having the later bye week.

Coming back from London, the Eagles will play the Panthers -- who are coming out of their bye week for their Week 6 game. They are also playing the Commanders coming oput of their bye week (Week 8) and the Giants off their bye week (Week 9).

That's three teams in four weeks against teams coming out of their bye week. The Eagles actually play four games against teams coming out of their bye week, tied with the Chargers for the most in the league.

For context on how difficult it is to win games against teams coming off their bye week, the Commanders went 1-3 against the four teams they played coming off a bye last year. The 49ers also went 1-3 in that same situation in 2024.

The Eagles are better than those teams, but you never know how injuries and other factors play out. This is something to keep an eye on.

Maybe passing on the early bye week was a bad idea -- or was just a weird schedule quirk to accommodate the insane amount of home games the Eagles have over the next 11 weeks.