The Steelers' bye week offers an opportunity for a little advanced scouting prior to their next game on Nov. 15 at Cincinnati.
But you'll have to get up early.
The Bengals are taking on the Falcons in Spain.
Following is a capsule look at that matchup and a couple of other Week 9 meetings that intrigue for a variety of reasons:
BENGALS (5-2) vs. FALCONS (3-5), 9:30 a.m., Madrid, NFLN
Cincinnati: The Bengals are second in the NFL with an average of 29.4 points per game and have converted 52.9 percent of their third downs, the best success rate in the NFL in that category since the 2011 Saints (56.7) … Quarterback Joe Burrow has completed an NFL-leading 73.0 percent of his passes. Burrow also leads the league in passing yards per game (302.1) and touchdown passes (20) … Wide receiver Tee Higgins is averaging a career-high 103.7 receiving yards per game and a career-high 16.9 yards per reception. Burrow's passer rating when targeting Higgins is 132.3.
Atlanta: Running back Bijan Robinson leads the NFL in rushing yards with 780, ranks fourth in yards from scrimmage with 983 and third in average yards per touch (minimum 75 touches) at 5.6 … The Falcons averaged 40.0 points per game and won their first two games in which Michael Penix Jr. started at quarterback but have lost three of their last four … Atlanta became the first team to get shut out in 2026 when it lost last Sunday at Tampa Bay, 16-0. It was Kevin Stefanski's first shutout loss as an NFL head coach.
BROWNS (5-3) at SAINTS (2-5), 1 p.m., CBS
Cleveland: The Browns are the only team above .500 with a negative point differential (-34) … Cleveland has the easiest remaining strength of schedule in the AFC North (.470 opponents' winning percentage). The Browns are followed by Pittsburgh (.471), Cincinnati (.493) and Baltimore (.522) in that category … Cleveland's 1,486 receiving yards from players age 23 or younger are nearly 500 more than any other NFL team (the Raiders are second with 994). That's also 82.2 percent of the Browns' receiving yards as a team, the second-highest figure from players 23 or younger in the Super Bowl era (1978 Jets, 84.4).
New Orleans: The Saints have the fourth-worst scoring defense in the NFL (29.7 points per game allowed) and are one of two teams to allow at least 300 total net yards in every game this season (the Cowboys are the other) … Quarterback Tyler Shough is tied with Green Bay's Jordan Love for the most pass attempts per game in 2026 (39.0). Shough is tied for ninth in the NFL with 15 offensive touchdowns but has the worst touchdowns-giveaways ratio (15:9) among the 11 quarterbacks with at least 15 offensive touchdowns this season … Wide receiver Chris Olave has fewer than 60 receiving yards in each of his last three games. Olave had the second-most receptions (35) and receiving yards (491) in the NFL in the season's first four weeks.
PACKERS (5-3) at PATRIOTS (5-3), 4.25 p.m., FOX
Green Bay: The Packers have the third-best scoring defense (14.6 points per game) since Week 4. Green Bay is also second in takeaways (13) and second in sacks (15) in that span … Quarterback Jordan Love has an NFL-leading 2,246 pass yards entering Week 9. Love has multiple touchdown passes in seven of his first eight starts. Love has also thrown at least one interception in six of eight games (tied for the third-most in the NFL) … The Packers are averaging an NFL-worst 60.6 yards per game rushing, the fewest by a team in a season since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger, and an NFL-worst 2.9 yards per carry.
New England: The Patriots have 12 players with 100-plus yards from scrimmage, three more than any other team, and an NFL-best eight players with 200-plus yards from scrimmage … Quarterback Drake Maye leads the NFL with a 122.2 passer rating since Week 4 and has a passer rating of 110-plus in four consecutive starts (the league's longest active streak). Maye has also produced three-plus offensive touchdowns in five straight games … The Patriots have the third-best scoring offense (29.6 points per game) and have averaged the most yards per play (6.4) in the NFL since Week 4.
BILLS (6-1) at VIKINGS (6-1), 8:15 p.m., Monday, ESPN
Buffalo: The Bills are averaging an NFL-leading and franchise-record 33.3 points per game … Buffalo is 3-0 on the road … Bills quarterback Josh Allen (11 touchdown passes, nine rushing touchdowns) is the first player in NFL history with eight-plus passing touchdowns and eight-plus rushing touchdowns in his team's first seven games of a season … Running back James Cook has 707 rushing yards (fifth in the NFL) and seven rushing touchdowns (eighth) and has run for a touchdown in six consecutive games.
Minnesota: The Vikings are averaging an NFL-best 13.3 points per game allowed. Minnesota is also No. 1 in passing yards allowed per game (154.9) and red zone defense (opponents have scored touchdowns on 25.0 percent of their opportunities). The Vikings are No. 2 in sacks (25), yards per play against (4.7), yards per game allowed (271.6) and third-down conversions allowed (29.7 percent) … Minnesota is 3-0 at home … The Vikings' 16.8 points per game since Week 2 ranks 30th in NFL, ahead of only the Eagles (16.1) and Chargers (14.2) … Wide receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison both have career-low averages in receiving yards per game (Jefferson 55.8, Addison 41.5).
