Numbers show a bye week indeed makes a team a couple points better

[jbcarol]

https://twitter.com/SBNationCFB/status/733417471311368192

There are two steps involved in the release of a given year's SEC football schedule. Step 1: It is released. Step 2: Alabama fans note how many of their upcoming opponents have bye weeks before facing Alabama.

What do the numbers actually say about the effects of bye weeks?

To search for an answer here, we're going to look at percentile performances and a team's performance vs. the spread.

The most important piece of this is probably the 14-day sample. That's your standard bye week. And teams played at a high level, improved by more than three percentile points, and overachieved by more than two points compared to the spread.

This is only a one-year glimpse...