The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 9 matchup between the Steelers and Colts.
Find a breakdown of every Week 9 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| Indianapolis | Rank | @ | Pittsburgh | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -3.0 | Spread | 3.0 | ||
| 26.25 | Implied Total | 23.25 | ||
| 33.8 | 1 | Points/Gm | 25.0 | 11 |
| 19.3 | 6 | Points All./Gm | 25.0 | 22 |
| 58.9 | 23 | Plays/Gm | 54.9 | 31 |
| 63.9 | 24 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 68.4 | 32 |
| 6.5 | 1 | Off. Yards/Play | 5.4 | 16 |
| 5.4 | 17 | Def. Yards/Play | 5.6 | 24 |
| 45.44% | 11 | Rush% | 42.19% | 19 |
| 54.56% | 22 | Pass% | 57.81% | 14 |
| 34.25% | 2 | Opp. Rush % | 38.20% | 7 |
| 65.75% | 31 | Opp. Pass % | 61.80% | 26 |
- The Colts' 3.46 points per drive are the second-most by a team through eight weeks of a season, trailing only the 2007 Patriots (3.57).
- Indianapolis leads the NFL in success rate per play on offense (49.6%).
- Pittsburgh is 29th in success rate per play on defense (53.4%).
- The Colts lead the NFL in plays of 15 or more yards (65).
- The Steelers are last in the league in differential of plays gaining 15 or more yards versus their opponents (-25).
- Pittsburgh has allowed over 450 yards of offense in back-to-back games for only the second time in franchise history.
- The Steelers are allowing a league-high 38.5 yards per possession.
- The Colts average a league-high 41.0 yards per drive.
- The Colts allow 37.0 yards per drive, 30th in the league.
- The Steelers allow at least one first down on 79.9% of their opponents' drives, 31st in the league.
- The Colts allow at least one first down on 79.7% of their opponents' drives, 30th in the league.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Daniel Jones (TRUST): Jones kept his incredible renaissance rolling on Sunday, completing 21 of 29 passes for 272 yards (9.4 Y/A) and 3 touchdowns against the Titans.
Jones has thrown multiple touchdowns in four straight games for the first time in his career.
For the season, he has completed 71.2% of his passes (3rd) for 8.5 yards per pass attempt (3rd).
He has stayed out of negative plays more than any other passer.
With a 1.2% interception rate and a 3.6% sack rate, only 11.0% of his dropbacks have resulted in -1.0 EPA or worse, the best rate in the league.
Jones has been a QB1 scorer in six of eight games this season.
Facing a good pass rush would typically be a spot where we would proceed with caution with Jones, but this season, he has stood up to pressure.
He leads the NFL with a 111.1 rating when pressured, completing 61.6% of his passes (2nd) for 7.3 Y/A (5th) with 6 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.
We also have the potential for the Colts to be in a competitive game environment.
Jones is third in fantasy points per dropback (0.62) but 23rd in dropbacks per game (32.9).
Indianapolis has a 65.2% dropback rate in the first half of games, which is seventh in the league.
As a result, Jones leads all quarterbacks in fantasy scoring in the first half of games.
But the Colts have had the lowest dropback rate in the second half this season (46.1%), which moves Jones to QB12 in second-half scoring.
Pittsburgh should push the Colts here.
If that happens, this Pittsburgh pass defense has been exploitable.
The Steelers are allowing 7.5 yards per pass attempt (24th) and 11.1 yards per completion (24th).
They are allowing 18.3 passing points per game, 31st in the league and ahead of only the Cowboys.
The Steelers have allowed five QB1-scoring weeks in seven games.
The exceptions have been Dillon Gabriel and Sam Darnold.
Darnold still threw for 8.9 Y/A and 295 yards in that game.
They have allowed top-10 weeks to Justin Fields (29.5 points), Drake Maye (19.2 points), Carson Wentz (21.2 points), Joe Flacco (26 points), and Jordan Love (28.3 points).
If there is anything odd here to account for, Jones has only played one outdoor game so far, which was against Tennessee.
Aaron Rodgers: Rodgers has been a highly usable fantasy option of late.
He has been QB16 (17.5 points), QB10 (22.6 points), and QB15 (16.8 points) over the past three weeks.
He has multiple passing touchdowns in five of his seven games and leads the NFL in touchdown rate (7.7%).
Rodgers is QB8 in passing points per attempt (0.546), which is actually higher than Jones (QB9 at 0.529).
But Rodgers does not come with any rushing, and the Steelers play slow (second-fewest plays in the league), which has capped his upside and makes him better used as a floor-based QB2.
The Pittsburgh defense is creating better game environments for fantasy, however, which we should see here.
Rodgers has 35.0 dropbacks per game over the past three weeks (QB14).
If the Steelers are throwing here, the Colts have allowed QB1 scoring weeks in four of their past seven games.
The exceptions have been Cam Ward (twice) and Geno Smith, while Bo Nix, Matthew Stafford, Jacoby Brissett, and Justin Herbert have all reached 20 fantasy points against the Colts over that span.
Running Back
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Learn MoreMore Week 9 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Ravens @ Dolphins | Thursday Night Football |
| Bears @ Bengals | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Vikings @ Lions | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Panthers @ Packers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Chargers @ Titans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Falcons @ Patriots | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| 49ers @ Giants | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Colts @ Steelers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Broncos @ Texans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jaguars @ Raiders | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Saints @ Rams | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Chiefs @ Bills | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Seahawks @ Commanders | Sunday Night Football |
| Cardinals @ Cowboys | Monday Night Football |