The 2024 NFL season is well underway. Which means we are well into bye week territory as teams around the NFL take turns getting a week off to plan for the stretch run and recover from the physical ailments accumulated from the game of football.
For newer fans, a "bye week" is a week off all NFL teams get at some point in the schedule. It means they will not play that week and can use their time off to rest, recover and reset. Bye weeks are spread out between Week 5 and Week 15. So from now until December, each week of games will be missing a few teams– except for this past Week 8, which was a delightfully loaded slate that won't repeat itself until the Christmas lights are up and flickering.
Here's who's on bye for Week 9.
NFL Teams on Bye in Week 9
The Pittsburgh Steelers and San Francisco 49ers are the only two teams with byes this week. It follows the pattern of Week 7, which also featured only two teams on bye for the week.
TEAM
RECORD BEFORE BYE
Pittsburgh Steelers
6-2
San Francisco 49ers
4-4
The Steelers hit their bye week feeling mighty good about themselves. A bold move by Mike Tomlin to replace Justin Fields with Russell Wilson at quarterback appears to have paid off as the offense is clicking and Pittsburgh has ripped off two straight primetime victories. Vibes are high entering the break.
Conversely, the 49ers limp into their bye week. They are coming off an encouraging victory over the Dallas Cowboys on but the roster is pretty banged-up, especially after losing Brandon Aiyuk for the season. Reinforcements may await on the other side, though, as Christian McCaffrey's status grows more positive by the week.
How Week 9 Byes Affect Fantasy Football
There are some substantial names that will be missing from the lineups in Week 9.
Top fantasy players on bye in Week 8
PLAYER
POSITION
Russell Wilson, Pittsburgh Steelers
QB
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers
QB
Najee Harris, Pittsburgh Steelers
RB
Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers
RB
Isaac Guerendo, San Francisco 49ers
RB
Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers
WR
George Pickens, Pittsburgh Steelers
WR
George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers
TE
Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers
TE
Top replacements for fantasy players on bye in Week 9
Here are a few potential options at QB, RB and TE to cover for your fantasy team as the above key players go into their bye week. The last column indicates how available a player is, i.e. Matthew Stafford is available in 81% of all ESPN fantasy leagues.
PLAYER
POSITION
% Available in ESPN Leagues
Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
QB
81%
Jaleel McLaughlin, Denver Broncos
RB
75%
Demarcus Robinson, Los Angeles Rams
WR
87%
Cedric Tillman, Cleveland Browns
WR
83%
Adam Trautman, Denver Broncos
TE
99%
