Superstars may lead the discussion when it comes to success in the NFL, but more often than not, it’s the guys you barely know who will make the plays needed when they’re needed. Such players can be underrated for all kinds of reasons. Perhaps they’re playing in a smaller market, and the media isn’t appropriately trumpeting their exploits. Maybe they’re hidden in a depth chart behind bigger names who may not be doing as much. Or, it’s always possible that a wayward coach hasn’t quite figured out that one guy needs elevation to bring better results to the team.

Whatever the reason, we at SB Nation always like to bring the underrated names to you with the offseason Hidden Gems and in-season Secret Superstars series. You can also catch up on the AFC and NFC Secret Superstars for the 2026 season right here.

Here are our AFC Secret Superstars for Week 9 of the 2026 regular season. And if you haven’t yet, download the new SB Nation app, so you can better read our stuff and join the conversation wherever you are!

(All advanced metrics courtesy of Next Gen Stats, Pro Football Focus, Sports Info Solutions, and Sumer Sports unless otherwise indicated).

Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Is your offense better and more dangerous with a truly explosive running back? Obviously, yes. If you have a Bijan Robinson, Jahmyr Gibbs, or James Cook, your offense is going to cook in ways others can’t if they don’t have one of those rare backs who’s always a threat to take one to the house.

But if you don’t have such a back — and there are only a handful in the NFL at any given time — what do you do then? The second-best option is to have at least one back who can sustain drives with consistent power, and whatever agility and straight-line speed is in the skill set.

This is why Sean Payton’s Denver Broncos selected Washington back Jonah Coleman with the 108th overall pick in the fourth round of the 2026 draft. In his final college season, the 5’9”, 228-pound Coleman ran the ball 157 times for 758 yards (4.8 yards per carry), 15 touchdowns, 37 forced missed tackles, 20 runs of 10 or more yards, and 11 runs of 15 or more yards. But all anybody wanted to talk about with Coleman was his alleged lack of explosiveness and burst, which I found interesting based on my own tape study. The guy wasn’t running 4.2 40-yard dashes on the field, but big plays happened pretty frequently.

Coleman also caught 31 passes on 34 targets for 346 yards and two touchdowns in 2025, which set him up well for Payton’s offense, where the backs need to be receivers.

Coleman’s NFL transition was slowed by an ankle injury that landed him on injured reserve in late September, but he’s developed into a force multiplier over the last two weeks. He had 104 total yards on 15 touches against the Kansas City Chiefs in a 28-24 Week 8 win, and last Sunday against the Carolina Panthers in a 26-21 win, Coleman ran 17 times for 57 yards and a touchdown, with three forced missed tackles. He also caught four passes for 31 yards. Did he have a single play over 10 yards? No he didn’t, but over and over when he was handed the rock, Coleman was able to make Denver’s drives easier by creating first downs, and making first downs easier for others by getting the Broncos in favorable down-and-distance situations.

“We had those glimpses in the spring and in training camp and in the preseason,” Payton said of Coleman on Nov. 4. “The one thing that was unique about him is oftentimes, you don’t get to see [young running backs] in third-down protection plans, but he was someone that we had quite a bit of tape on. Advanced protection plans, and he’s built to handle the blitz. It’s one thing to know who I have, but then also to be strong enough to do it. I would say that there were three backs [in the draft] — we just saw one of them [Coleman] that we really had visions for. Each one may be a little different, but his versatility, you don’t get to stamp that with a lot of rookie backs that you feel like they’re going to develop into. We saw enough that we felt like he was going to be a good third-down protecting back as well with the way he was built.”

Quarterback Bo Nix agreed.

“I think he’s playing really well with confidence. He’s a very intelligent young running back. What sticks out the most is he can handle a lot. You can put a lot on his plate. After we learned that R.J. Harvey wasn’t going to play last week, he got a little bit more of the bulk of R.J.’s stuff. It’s impressive to see him be able to be used in a lot of different ways. When he gets in there, he’s a natural runner. That’s what he’s drafted for. That’s the position he plays. It’s the out of the backfield stuff that I think is making a good impression on us right now.”

Smart coaches and personnel people will tell you to avoid focusing on what a player can’t do — instead, focus on the potential. Jonah Coleman won’t blow you away with RedZone highlights, but when it comes to value for his offense, that’s relatively irrelevant — and it’s great that he’s landed with a team that understands.

Getty Images

Getty Images

After the Texans blew the Los Angeles Chargers out of SoFi Stadium in their 44-22 shellacking of the NFL’s only winless team, the conversation turned to quarterback C.J. Stroud’s amazing day (21 of 35 for 385 yards, five touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 125.5), Tank Dell’s first touchdown catch since Week 16 of the 2024 season, and Nico Collins’ insane touchdown catch over cornerback Tarheeb Still.

But the Texan who caught two touchdown passes in that game was Kayshon Boutte, the former New England Patriot who was traded to Houston on Aug. 24 for safety Jaylen Reed and a 2028 seventh-round draft pick. Boutte hadn’t been one of the Texans’ primary targets this season — he had 15 catches on 25 targets for 194 yards and no touchdowns on the season before Sunday — and head coach DeMeco Ryans was quite happy about Boutte breaking out with four catches on five targets for 125 yards and those two scores.

“I’ve really been working with the offense trying to get them to get Boutte a pass where he can stay up and run it in for a touchdown—he did that today,” Ryans said postgame. “A lot of his catches he’s made in the previous weeks were tough catches on the sideline, but this time he was actually able to run one for a touchdown. On that particular play to see [WR] Nico [Collins] down the field blocking and see [TE] Dalton [Schultz] down the field blocking, that’s probably what I’m most proud of on that play. Guys really selling out for each other.”

Well, now the 3-5 Texans have that to add to the overall arsenal as they try to overcome their unexpectedly rough (0-4) start to the season.

Getty Images

Getty Images

The Jaguars are the best team people aren’t talking about enough (they currently rank first in overall DVOA for the first time in franchise history), and a primary reason for that is a defense that is the NFL’s most underrated. Anthony Campanile’s defense (remember that name; Campanile is on a head coach track) ranked third in Defensive DVOA before they traded for Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates III, New Orleans Saints IDL Davon Godchaux, and Philadelphia Eagles IDL Jordan Davis.

Jags general manager James Gladstone learned all about “F Them Picks” during his time in the Los Angeles Rams’ front office from 2016 through 2024, and he has good reason to go all out now. This is a legitimate Super Bowl contender, and the guys that Campanile already had on his roster have played above their name recognition.

Perhaps the man whose national awareness lags farthest behind his actual achievements is linebacker Ventrell Miller. The 2023 fourth-round pick out of Florida lost his entire rookie season to a torn Achilles tendon in the preseason, and had to overcome other ailments in 2024 and 2025, but the fully healthy version of Mr. Miller has been quite the revelation. On the season, Miller has a sack, eight pressures, 35 solo tackles, 23 stops, three tackles for loss, and a forced fumble. In coverage, he’s allowed 17 catches on 24 targets for 128 yards, no touchdowns, no interceptions, four pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 83.3.

Miller was at his best in last Thursday’s 33-10 win over the Baltimore Ravens, showing his skills at the line of scrimmage, and at the second level.

“He’s done a really good job overall,” Campanile said of Miller back on Sept. 24. “He’s a guy you can rely on to set the tone physically for the defense. And that’s one thing that I feel like he’s done over the first two games. He’s looking to improve, he’s trying to do extra. And I think all of his teammates see that, and that’s been a good thing for our defense.”

An extremely good thing for a Jaguars defense that is on the way up. Ventrell Miller has become a top-tier NFL linebacker at the perfect time for his team.