Predicting the Miami Dolphins bye week and why it's important
By Brian Miller
Every NFL team will get one weekend off in 2024 when their bye arrives. For many teams, the later in the season, the better.
On May 15, we will know the full schedule and when the Miami Dolphins will get their bye. There are four highlights that fans react to immediately when a schedule is released. Who and where do they open the season, who do they close the season against, do they play on any holidays, and when will they get a needed week off? This year, Miami should again hope for a later bye. Before we dive into our prediction, here are the last six bye weeks, the results the week after, and what happened the week before.
Bye week | Prior games | Results after bye | Location after bye |
|---|---|---|---|
2023 - Week 10 | Germany trip | Beat Raiders | Home |
2022 - Week 11 | Home vs. Browns | Beat Texans | Home |
2021 - Week 14 | Two home games | Beat Jets | Home |
2020 - Week 7 | Beat Jets | Beat Rams | Home |
2019 - Week 5 | Home vs. Chargers | Lost to Washington | Home |
2018 - Week 11 | Loss @ Green Bay | Loss to Colts | Away |
The Dolphins have done well coming off a bye week the last four seasons. Prior to the bye, the Dolphins have more often than not played at home or, as was the case last year, out of the country. This year, the Dolphins will not play overseas, but they will play two games on the West Coast.
The Miami Dolphins schedule will officially be released on May 15
The last time the Dolphins played two consecutive West Coast games, the NFL schedulers did not do them any favors. They sent them to Buffalo following the two-week road game trip, making it three on the road in a row. Miami returned home to play the Packers. Their bye week came two weekends before their three-game trip.
Don't expect the NFL to be the same this year, and Miami has had its share of luck getting home games after and even before bye weeks. This year, we think the schedule will put Miami on the road against the Rams and then the Seahawks in back-to-back weeks. Miami will have their bye week immediately following their West Coast trip. Could Miami then play home the following weekend?
Is there any rhyme or reason for this prediction? Not really. Both teams are West Coast NFC clubs that won't likely come onto the schedule later in the season. My guess would be that a midseason road trip makes more sense. It would also give the NFL schedulers an opportunity to put more emphasis on games like the Bills, Jets, Jaguars, and Texans in the month of December, adding to the drama of the year-end push for the playoffs.
It wouldn't make sense for the NFL to send Miami to the West Coast early in the year. More than likely, Miami will get teams like Cleveland, New England, Indianapolis, and Tennessee in the first two months, and when the middle of the season arrives, Miami will travel west and then have their bye week around Week 9 or Week 10. It's a prediction and nothing more, but without an out-of-country game on the schedule, the league can pretty much slot teams any way they want.
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