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The Steelers remain the NFL's only undefeated team at 9-0, and while the pass rush has garnered much of the attention for their early-season success, the secondary has been one of the best in the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøas well. We must start up front, however, as the Steelers' 42.3 percent pressure rate and 10.5 percent sack rate would be the highest in a single season by any defense in the Next Gen Stats era (since 2016). T.J. Watt leads the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøwith 52 pressures, but three other Steelers also rank in the top eight in pressures this season (Bud Dupree, Stephon Tuitt, Cameron Heyward), making the Steelers' balanced pass rush that much harder to stop. In the secondary, the Steelers are forcing opposing quarterbacks to complete -4.1 percent of passes below expectation this season (lowest in the NFL). The fierce pass rush combined with the lockdown secondary make Pittsburgh the leading contender to represent the AFC in Super Bowl LV.

The Raiders pulled off a stunning 40-32 upset of the Chiefs in Week 5, handing Kansas City its first and only loss of the season. Patrick Mahomes was harassed the entire game, facing pressure on 16 dropbacks, the most in a game for Mahomes this season and second-most of his career. Mahomes also struggled when under pressure in Week 5, throwing his only INT of the season and completing just four of 13 passes. In every other game this season, Mahomes has completed 52.5 percent of his attempts under pressure to go along with a 2:0 TD-to-INT ratio. While the Raiders' defensive front deserves much of the credit, the back end helped force Mahomes to hold onto the ball longer in Week 5 than ever; he averaged 3.71 seconds to throw on his 43 attempts (at least 0.5 seconds longer per attempt than any other game of his career). Look for more quick passes from Mahomes and the Chiefs if they want to break even with Las Vegas in 2020.

The Dolphins' game plan of quick throws and play-action passes, paired with Tua Tagovailoa's mobility, have allowed the rookie to avoid pressure and lead the Dolphins to three wins in his first three ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøstarts. Among players with at least 75 passes this season, Tua's 2.54 seconds average time to throw ranks sixth-fastest in the NFL. Combine that with Tua evading pressure at a top-10 rate (14.3%, ninth-highest) and the Dolphins using play-action on more than one-third of Tua's dropbacks (34.6%, fourth-highest), and Tua has been pressured just 18.5 percent of the time when dropping back to pass (fifth-lowest rate in NFL). Keeping Tua protected is key to the Dolphins' offensive success, as all five of Tua's passing TDs have come when not under pressure this season. Tua looks to improve to 4-0 as a starter Sunday against a Broncos defense that has pressured the opposing QB on just 24.1 percent of dropbacks this season (18th-highest in the NFL).

Jared Goff and the Rams are in a heated battle for the NFL's most competitive division, the NFC West, and will be without the services of Pro Bowl LT Andrew Whitworth for the next 6-8 weeks. Goff has been pressured on just 24.3 percent of his dropbacks this season (second-lowest rate of Goff's career) but is having his worst season passing under pressure under since his rookie year in 2016. Goff has completed just 36.8 percent of his passes under pressure (second-lowest in NFL), and his 4.3 yards per attempt under pressure is the lowest in his career. Although a small sample size, Goff was pressured on four of 17 dropbacks (23.5%) after Whitworth exited the game in Week 10 vs. Seattle, after seeing pressure on just three of 23 dropbacks (13%) with Whitworth in the lineup. Goff's first game without Whitworth is against a Bucs defense that blitzes (42% of dropbacks) and pressures the QB (31%) at the second-highest rates in the NFL.

Coming off his 2019 MVP season, Lamar Jackson has led the Ravens to a 6-3 record and the thick of the AFC playoff race, but he has performed below expectations in a few key areas where he excelled last season. Jackson shattered the Next Gen Stats (since 2016) record with 24 passing TDs against the blitz last season (next closest: Matt Ryan, who had 15 in 2016) but has seen his passer rating drop 34 points against the blitz this season (from 117.3 in 2019 to 83.3 in 2020). Jackson has also regressed on downfield attempts (10-plus air yards), seeing a 26-point drop in his passer rating (126.0 to 100.0) while averaging only 9.0 yards per downfield attempt (11.9 in 2019). Jackson isn't even the most explosive rushing QB in the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøthis season, as he trails Kyler Murray in rushes reaching 15-plus mph (63 to 48), after leading the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøin 15-plus mph rushes last season (93). Coming off a rainy loss to the Patriots, the Ravens look to rebound in Week 11 vs Tennessee and continue to push for a playoff spot.

The Saints are expected to start Taysom Hill at quarterback this week with Drew Brees sidelined after suffering cracked ribs and a lung issue in Week 10, per ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷ÍøNetwork Insider Ian Rapoport. The versatile Hill has aligned as a tight end most often in his career (168 snaps, 30.4%), followed by QB (134, 24.3%), slot WR (126, 22.8%), wide receiver (75, 13.6%) and running back (49, 8.9%). Hill has yet to throw for a score in his four ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøseasons but he has 11 TDs as a receiver/rusher and averages 5.5 yards per carry. He has played 141 offensive snaps this season, including 40 at quarterback. Of those 40 snaps at QB, 35 have been run plays, with Hill keeping the ball on 33 of the 35 rushes (5.6 yards per rush, 1 TD). With Hill leading the Saints' offense, we expect Sean Payton to pull something new out of his bag of tricks in Week 11 against the Falcons.