NFL Week 5 Byes: Every team that's off this week

For the first four weeks of the NFL season, fans were ensured that not only their favorite team would play, but all other 31 teams would take the field either on Thursday, Sunday, or Monday. Week 5 of the season will not offer that same guarantee.

There are still 14 games scheduled, meaning 28 of the 32 NFL teams will be playing at some point in Week 5, but the other four teams will have a bye week. This means that they won't be playing at all this week and will have the opportunity to rest and plan ahead of Week 6.

Every team has a bye week at some point, and these four clubs are the first to receive the week off this season.

 NFL Teams on Bye in Week 5

Here are the four teams who will be out of action in Week 5:

One team in particular that looks poised to benefit a lot by having the bye now is the Philadelphia Eagles. Not only have they played some subpar football to begin their season, but they were without stars like A.J. Brown, Lane Johnson, and DeVonta Smith in their Week 4 loss. Perhaps with an extra week off, one or more of those players can return.

How Week 5 bye weeks affect Fantasy Football

Not only do bye weeks impact NFL fans who want to watch their favorite teams, but they impact fantasy football managers a ton as well. They might have to find a way to get by without key players on their team.

Players on bye obviously do not record any fantasy points, so moving them to the bench in place of literally any active player is a necessity. Finding impactful players can be tough, but fortunately, there were several enticing options on the waiver wire.

Top players on bye in Week 5:

Quarterbacks

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

How Week 5 bye teams can benefit

Having an early bye week might seem like a disadvantage, and for a team like the Detroit Lions who are clicking on all cylinders right now and have Super Bowl aspirations, it might be one. For the other three teams getting byes, though, this comes in clutch.

Justin Herbert has been dealing with a high ankle sprain, which has undoubtedly impacted his level of play thus far. The Los Angeles Chargers have lost two in a row as well after a 2-0 start, so this gives them a chance to regroup.

The Eagles have played some sloppy football as well, and are without several key players as listed above. This gives those injured players more time to return, and gives the team to get itself together before it's too late.

The Tennessee Titans lost Will Levis during their Monday Night Football game due to injury. This extra week off gives him more time to rest up and get ready to roll in Week 6.

 How Week 5 bye weeks affect the rest of the season

There are advantages and disadvantages to getting a bye week before most of the league. Some of the key advantages include giving coaching staffs enough time to shake things up in a major way before it gets too late into the season, and also giving injured players more time to recover, giving them the best chance to be available in the crucial middle parts of the year.

The disadvantages might outweigh the pros, though. Getting a break is great now, but having the bye now means that these four teams will play every week from Week 6 to Week 18. That's a ton of football, and can mean they're all extremely fatigued. For teams like the Lions and Eagles who envision themselves as Super Bowl contenders, being fatigued later in the season could mean earlier exits than they might've envisioned.

This bye can help struggling teams like the Eagles, Chargers, and Titans regroup and potentially put better efforts forward in the coming weeks, but it also could prove to be detrimental for a Lions team that is already 3-1, just scored 42 points on prime time, and again, has Super Bowl aspirations. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out.