PFF Grades and Data: Key insights for every NFL Week 5 game

Christian McCaffrey to step up in San Francisco: McCaffrey is the only player to surpass 100 touches so far this season, and his workload shows no signs of slowing down with the 49ers dealing with injuries at wide receiver and tight end. He’s been especially effective as a receiver out of the backfield, leading all players at the position in receptions (23), yards (219) and first-down conversions (8).

Puka Nacua is off to a scorching start: Nacua has been especially dangerous on in-breaking routes, where he leads the NFL with 22 catches for 261 yards and a 94.5 receiving grade. The next closest receiver is Zay Flowers with 12 catches on in-breakers. The 49ers, however, have done a strong job limiting those routes, allowing just 182 yards on in-breakers, the fifth-fewest in the league.

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NFL Week 5 is here, and with it comes a fresh wave of advanced data and analysis.

PFF’s media research team has been hard at work this week, preparing for kickoff — pulling data-driven insights and talking points for our broadcast partners around the league. Now, we’re sharing those same nuggets with you. So, whether you’re looking to win your fantasy matchup, hit on your bets or just get smarter about the game, these are the key storylines to know for every Week 5 contest.

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San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Rams

Christian McCaffrey is the only player to surpass 100 touches so far this season, and his workload shows no signs of slowing down with the 49ers dealing with injuries at wide receiver and tight end. He’s been especially effective as a receiver out of the backfield, leading all players at the position in receptions (23), yards (219) and first-down conversions (8). However, the Rams have been one of the NFL’s best defenses at containing backs in the passing game, having allowed just nine receptions for 48 yards, both top-three marks league-wide.

Puka Nacua is off to a scorching start, leading the league in nearly every major receiving category. He’s been especially dangerous on in-breaking routes, where he leads the NFL with 22 catches for 261 yards and a 94.5 receiving grade. The next closest receiver is Zay Flowers with 12 catches on in-breakers. The 49ers, however, have done a strong job limiting those routes, allowing just 182 yards on in-breakers, the fifth-fewest in the league.

Minnesota Vikings at Cleveland Browns

Justin Jefferson ranked tied for second in the NFL last season with 54 targets on intermediate throws (10–19 yards downfield), and he’s reasserting his dominance in that area again in 2025. He leads the league with 11 receptions for 195 yards on intermediate targets this season. The Browns have faced only 18 intermediate throws so far — third-fewest in the league — but they’ve struggled when tested, allowing a 72.0% completion rate and a 146.3 passer rating, both bottom-two marks league-wide.

Quinshon Judkins is solidifying his role as the Browns‘ lead back, logging 39 carries over the past two weeks, the third-most among all running backs in that span. His short-yardage finishing ability has stood out, with 12 rushing conversions (tied for second-most) and a 31.0% rushing conversion rate that ranks third among qualified backs. The Vikings’ run defense could be vulnerable in this area, having surrendered 32 rushing conversions this season, tied for sixth-most in the NFL.

Houston Texans at Baltimore Ravens

Keeping C.J. Stroud clean is critical to Houston’s offensive success. When under pressure, Stroud has posted just a 50.4 passer rating (21st in the league), but that number climbs to 107.1 (13th) when he's kept clean.

That bodes well against a Baltimore pass rush that hasn’t been its usual disruptive self. The Ravens rank 27th in pressure rate (29.5%) and 31st in sack rate (2.3%), struggling to collapse the pocket consistently.

Miami Dolphins at Carolina Panthers

In his first season as the Dolphins’ starting left tackle, Patrick Paul has been impressive in pass protection. His 2.8% pressure rate allowed ranks fourth-lowest among all left tackles, and he’s already recorded two clean sheets—allowing zero pressures—including one last week against Miami.

Generating pressure has been a major weakness for the Panthers’ defense to start the 2025 season. Carolina has pressured opposing quarterbacks on just 26.0% of dropbacks, the second-lowest rate in the NFL.

Las Vegas Raiders at Indianapolis Colts

Rookie Ashton Jeanty delivered his best performance as a pro in Week 4, forcing a season-high nine missed tackles and racking up 123 yards after contact, the second-most by a running back in a game through the first four weeks. He thrived on outside zone runs, gaining 107 of his 138 rushing yards on just 10 carries in that scheme.

First-round rookie tight end Tyler Warren continues to make an early impact. His 2.35 yards per route run lead all tight ends this season, highlighting his efficiency as a receiving threat.

New York Giants at New Orleans Saints

Cam Skattebo has been a bright spot for the Giants’ offense, earning an 83.7 overall PFF grade—the highest among running backs this season. His physical, tackle-breaking style has been on full display, with 145 of his 181 rushing yards coming after contact.

The Saints will rely on their linebacker duo of Demario Davis and Pete Werner to help contain New York’s ground game. Both are tied for the fourth-most run stops this season with 11 apiece. Davis has been especially disruptive, tallying seven tackles for loss or no gain on run plays—second-most in the league.

Dallas Cowboys at New York Jets

Dak Prescott and the Cowboys’ passing game could take advantage of play-action in this matchup. Prescott has completed 89.0% of his play-action attempts this season, the second-highest rate in the NFL, and is tied for the league lead with 44 such attempts.

On the other side, the Jets’ defense has struggled to contain play action. They’ve allowed a 137.0 passer rating in those situations, second-worst in the league. They have surrendered four touchdowns off play action, tied for the second-most.

When the Jets are on offense, expect a heavy dose of zone runs. They lead the NFL in inside zone usage (43%) and rank 11th in outside zone (32%). The bigger gains have come from outside zone, where their 17.2% explosive run rate ranks fifth league-wide.

Denver Broncos at Philadelphia Eagles

Nik Bonitto and Jonathon Cooper have been relentless to start the season, entering Week 5 as the only teammate duo with 20 or more total pressures apiece. They anchor a Broncos defense that will challenge an Eagles offensive line currently allowing the 11th-highest pressure rate in the league at 35.4%.

A.J. Brown has opened the 2025 season quietly, recording career lows in yards per reception (10.8) and target rate (21.3% of routes). That trend may continue against a Denver defense that has been effective at limiting explosive plays through the air, allowing just a 9.1% explosive pass rate, third-lowest in the NFL.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Seattle Seahawks

While Emeka Egbuka has a near-even route split — 60% out wide and 40% from the slot — the bulk of his production is coming on targets outside the numbers, especially in recent weeks. Over the past two games, Egbuka has recorded just two catches for 5 yards on targets inside the numbers, compared to eight receptions for a league-leading 178 yards on throws outside the numbers. That trend is likely to continue against a Seahawks defense that has allowed a league-high 52 catches outside the numbers.

His former Ohio State teammate Jaxon Smith-Njigba is evolving into a downfield threat, a notable shift from his early usage. After posting an average depth of target of 6.4 yards in 2023 and 9.2 in 2024, that figure has climbed to 12.7 this season. On throws 10-plus yards downfield, Smith-Njigba leads the league with a 97.4 receiving grade, along with 16 receptions for 365 yards. However, he’ll face a tough test against a Buccaneers defense that has allowed just 14 such receptions — tied for third-fewest in the NFL — and a 44.0% completion rate on those targets, seventh lowest in the league.

Tennessee Titans at Arizona Cardinals

Safety Xavier Woods is making an immediate impact in his first season with the Titans. He leads all safeties with a 90.0 overall grade, fueled by elite play in coverage. His 89.8 coverage grade also tops the position, highlighting his value in Tennessee’s secondary.

Arizona’s defense, meanwhile, has excelled on third downs. The Cardinals have held opposing quarterbacks to a 54.9 passer rating in those situations — the third-best mark in the league — and have allowed just two explosive pass plays (4.8%), the second-lowest rate in the NFL.

Detroit Lions at Cincinnati Bengals

Detroit ranks fifth in red-zone touchdown rate, converting 74.0% of red-zone drives into six points—and Amon-Ra St. Brown is a major reason why. Since entering the league, St. Brown’s 31 red-zone receiving touchdowns trail only Mark Andrews, and he leads all pass-catchers with six through four games this season. The Bengals’ defense has been tested frequently in the red zone, facing 55 plays in that area — second-most in the NFL — and allowing eight red-zone receiving touchdowns, tied for second-most.

After ranking top-five last season with 37 receptions and nine touchdowns against single coverage, Ja’Marr Chase has gotten off to a much slower start in 2025. Through four games, he has just two catches for 17 yards and one touchdown versus single coverage and hasn’t been targeted in those situations in the past two weeks with Jake Browning under center. That could change this week against a Lions defense that ranks sixth in man coverage usage at 35.0% of snaps.

Washington Commanders at Los Angeles Chargers

Regardless of who’s under center, the read option remains a staple of the Commanders’ run game. They rank top-two league-wide with 29 carries, 164 rushing yards and two touchdowns off read-option plays. Their 5.7 yards per carry on such plays leads all teams with at least 10 attempts. The Chargers have had mixed results defending read option this season, limiting the Raiders and Giants to just 11 yards on five carries but surrendering 47 yards on four carries to the Broncos.

Omarion Hampton is coming off his first career 100-yard rushing performance and is proving to be a load to bring down in his rookie campaign. Among qualified running backs, his 17 missed tackles forced on runs is tied for fourth-most, while his 3.8 yards after contact per carry ranks seventh. Washington’s tackling was an issue in Week 4 against Atlanta, where they allowed 129 yards after contact — seventh-most in a game this season — and missed 12 tackles on run plays, the second-highest single-game total in 2025.

New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills

Josh Allen connected on the deep ball when it mattered in Week 1, completing 5-of-8 passes for 130 yards on throws 20-plus yards downfield in Buffalo’s come-from-behind win over Baltimore. Since then, however, he’s struggled to replicate that success, completing just 1-of-6 deep attempts for 20 yards over the past three games. That stretch marks the lowest three-game total for Allen on deep throws in any regular-season span of his career. He’ll face a Patriots defense that has allowed nine completions for 247 yards and three touchdowns on deep throws — all bottom-three marks league-wide this season.

Drake Maye, meanwhile, has remained poised against the blitz, punishing defenses through the air and on the ground. His 127.0 passer rating when blitzed ranks second among qualified quarterbacks, and he also ranks top-two with 66 rushing yards and two touchdowns on scrambles against the blitz. The Bills have increased their blitz rate to 33.0% this season — up 11 percentage points from 2024 — and lead the NFL with a 57.0% pressure rate when sending extra rushers.

Kansas City Chiefs at Jacksonville Jaguars

Patrick Mahomes had a career-low 22 completions on vertical throws last season, and through Week 4 of 2025, he had already completed 10 such passes — matching nearly half of last year’s total. He matched his 2024 single-game high in vertical completions in just one week this season and currently ranks top-seven in both completions (10) and attempts (22) on vertical throws. His top target downfield has been Tyquan Thornton, whose 12 vertical targets are tied for the most in the NFL. Expect the deep passing game to remain a focus against a Jaguars defense that has faced 27 vertical attempts, second-most in the league.

Travis Etienne is off to a strong and explosive start in 2025, leading all qualified running backs with 6.1 yards per carry and tying for second with 10 runs of 10-plus yards. He’s been particularly effective on zone runs, where his average climbs to a league-best 6.6 yards per carry. That could pose problems for Kansas City’s defense, which has struggled against zone runs, allowing 5.0 yards per carry (fifth-worst) and eight explosive runs (tied for third-most) this season.