There’s no change in our weekly update of the quarterbacks on pace to break Dan Marino‘s single-season passing yardage record. But here’s a little extra food for thought: If Patriots QB Tom Brady is held to 62 yards passing this week at Pittsburgh, he will still be on pace to break Marino’s mark of 5,084 yards. Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers are still hot on Brady’s trail.

Brian Billick and Jim Mora discuss the hottest topics from around the league, including young quarterbacks making an impact, the Lions’ backslide, and an examination of the pros and cons of the “Wide 9″ defense.

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It’s safe to say that defenses around the NFL are finally starting to catch up. True, there were some prolific passers enjoying their bye weeks in Week 7, but the number of 300-yard passers dropped so significantly that it can’t be ignored. And with “only” six 300-yard performances in each of the previous two weeks, you can call this a trend. After 56 300-yard passing games through six weeks, there were a grand total of three in Week 7.

The torrid pace that Saints QB Drew Brees set in the first three weeks of the season has slowed down just a bit — he had thrown three TD passes in each of his first three games. Still, what was even more impressive for the number of pass attempts is that he had tossed only two interceptions in that span. The last three games have seen a dramatic reversal. It’s understandable that Brees hasn’t kept up the pace with TD passes, but he’s actually thrown more picks than scoring passes.

As Bears RB Matt Forte continues to plead his case to get a fat new contract, the numbers he’s putting up certainly don’t hurt. Through six games, his 908 total yards from scrimmage represent 43 percent of Chicago’s total offense.

In honor of the Bears traveling across the pond this week to play the Buccaneers in London, let’s call this a “shephard’s pie chart.”

Since neither starting QB in the Monday night game has any chance of being mistaken for Dan Fouts, we’ll go ahead and update our weekly look at who’s on pace to break Dan Marino‘s single-season passing record right now. As we’ve noted, Marino set the mark of 5,084 yards back in 1984. As many as six passers were on pace to top that number just a couple of weeks ago. As defenses around the league have figured things out, that total is down to three:

Shek & Rank welcome Jeff Pearlman, author of “Sweetness: The Enigmatic Life of Walter Payton,” to discuss the feedback he has received for telling the sometimes-dark story of an American legend, plus kibitz about the USFL and condiments. The fellas next yap with one of Tim Tebow‘s primary targets, Eric Decker. And finally, the DeLorean gets to 88 mph to see who wins in this weekend’s biggest games.

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With a win against Dallas on Sunday, New England’s Tom Brady and Bill Belichick can tie Pro Football Hall of Famers Dan Marino and Don Shula of Miami for the most wins (116) by a quarterback-head coach duo in the Super Bowl era (since 1966).

What’s interesting to note: The three retired coaches and three retired QBs on this list are all in the Hall of Fame. Brady and Belichick are first-ballot locks. Which leaves Donovan McNabb and Andy Reid. Are they both Canton-bound?

Perhaps lost in the Vikings’ slow start this year is the fact that their Pro Bowl pass rusher, Jared Allen, is off to a blazing start. Allen leads the NFL with 8.5 sacks in five games. He’s one of four players on pace to reach 20 sacks for the season — even more impressive, his projected total of 27 sacks would obliterate the current season mark of 22.5 held by former Giant Michael Strahan.

When the Bears host the Vikings on Sunday night, Jay Cutler won’t be the only quarterback twitching. If it seems as if Cutler is sacked more consistently than any other QB in the league, you’re right. The Bears passer has been taken down at least once in 27 straight games, the longest active streak in the league. But Donovan McNabb isn’t far behind, having been sacked in 20 straight games.

Even Dan Marino admits that it’s only a matter of time before someone breaks his 27-year-old single-season passing record of 5,084 yards. And as we take our weekly look at the numbers, it shows that five QBs are still on pace to set a new record. Tom Brady and Tony Romo face each other this week in what could be a wild aerial assault.

All the panic in Philadelphia after the Eagles dropped to 1-4 has overshadowed the news that Michael Vick passed Randall Cunningham as the all-time rushing leader among quarterbacks. It’s a very impressive record for two reasons. One, the top five in this category are all Pro Bowl quarterbacks, three of whom have led teams to the Super Bowl; and two, it took Vick only nine seasons to reach the mark that Cunningham set in 16 seasons. It’s safe to say that if Vick plays as long as these other guys did, his record will be completely out of reach.

The Texans have gotten off to a fast start this season, and it’s fast starts that have contributed to that 3-1 record. Houston has outscored its opponents 76-13 in the first half of games. That’s been good enough to hold on for the most part, but the Texans do need to avoid the second-half letdown — particularly in the third quarter, when they’ve been outscored 21-3.

Jets RB Shonn Greene‘s struggles this season have made LaDainian Tomlinson a key factor again — and as always, that means he’s playing a big part in the passing game. The 32-year-old veteran already has 13 catches this season, and he needs just five more to become just the fourth running back in NFL history to reach 600 for his career.

There was a point in the first half of Monday night’s Colts-Buccaneers game when cameras spotted Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis both on the sidelines during a Tampa Bay possession. And it was no surprise that Josh Freeman used that opportunity to start throwing the football deep. The point: Without Freeney and Mathis on the field, Indy’s pass rush is almost nonexistent.

Freeney and Mathis each have three sacks this season, combining for six of the team’s seven total sacks. And that’s nothing new. Since 2008, those two Pro Bowl DEs have combined for 72 percent of the Colts’ sacks.