NFL Power Rankings Week 8

By James Watkins

1. Philadelphia Eagles (last week’s ranking: 1): The trade for Jay Ajayi trade is the big story for this team moving forward. Yeah, they beat down the 49ers, but that’s to be expected at this point. The weather will get colder and the schedule much tougher in the coming weeks. Having another punishing runner like Ajayi should pay dividends to a team that was already built to win in the trenches with an experienced offensive line and LeGarrette Blount in the backfield.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (4): It wasn’t a pretty win, but it confirmed what many have been speculating over the past few weeks: the Steelers defense is scary good. The Lions made 5 trips into the red zone, but were never able to put the ball over the goal line. The 4^th ranked defense in the league even forced the high powered Detroit offense to turn the ball over on downs during two separate red zone opportunities. Even if the offense still needs some work, the other side of the ball is playing well enough to put the team in positions to win. If Big Ben and the other offensive weapons pick up the pace, it’s hard to imagine anyone stopping Pittsburgh.
3. New England Patriots (2): Posting a solid win over the Chargers is encouraging, but there was more bad news than good this week in Foxboro. First, breakout receiver Chris Hogan (who was already filling in for the injured Julian Edelman) is out a few weeks with a shoulder injury. Second, the Bills continue to keep pace with the Patriots, putting more pressure on this team to perform in the regular season than they’ve experienced in a decade. Finally, the trading of Jimmy Garoppolo and subsequent signing of Brian Hoyer is a definitive downgrade at the backup quarterback position. If Brady is out for any extended period of time, New England could be in the same sinking ship as Green Bay.
4. Seattle Seahawks (3): Getting into a shootout isn’t the best idea for this team. Russell Wilson is a great quarterback who can pull out a few victories like he did on Sunday against Houston, but he can’t do that every week. The defense has some weak points that haven’t been present in years past, namely the sudden ineffectiveness of the Legion of Boom. Seattle is currently 21^st in pass defense. That’s pretty pedestrian for a secondary that has all of its major players healthy. On the bright side, the offensive line is made instantly better by the addition of Duane Brown.
5. Los Angeles Rams (5): *Bye*
6. Kansas City Chiefs (6): It’s never a bad thing to earn a division win, but this game could have gone a lot differently if Kansas City had been up against a more talented quarterback. The Chiefs’ inability to cash in on any of their 3 trips into the red zone is alarming, especially considering this game was played at Arrowhead. Fortunately, Harrison Butker is the future.
7. Minnesota Vikings (7): It took a while in London, but the Vikings found their game late to beat the Browns and extend their lead in the NFC North. There’s very little to complain about with this squad. The fact that they keep picking up wins with Case Keenum under center is a true testament to how talented the rest of the roster is. That’s not to slight Keenum, who has played quite well in Sam Bradford’s absence. They have a big stretch of games coming up, with contests against the Rams and at main division rival Detroit in the next 3 weeks. So far they seem up to the task.
8. Buffalo Bills (11): Outside of the previously mentioned Duane Brown, I think Kelvin Benjamin fills the biggest hole on his new club out of all the players that were moved at the deadline. Buffalo has been winning games without any true playmakers in the passing game, and now they’ve added a serious threat in the former Panthers receiver. Maybe Tyrod Taylor can manage over 200 yards passing in a game now that Benjamin is in the fold. The defense is legitimate, but the offense still needed a little more game-breaking potential. They now have that.
9. Dallas Cowboys (9): They’re keeping pace with Philadelphia and the win in Washington was quite impressive, but the uncertainty surrounding both Ezekiel Elliot and Dez Bryant is concerning. Zeke could be taken away at any moment and it’s only a matter of time before Dez, disgruntled with his lack of targets, becomes a problem in the locker room. On the other hand, there isn’t a more mature young quarterback in the league than Dak Prescott. He can handle the pressure, and he’ll have to in order to keep Dallas in the thick of it.
10. Jacksonville Jaguars (10): *Bye*
11. New Orleans Saints (8): They really tried their best to give the game away to Chicago, but they pulled it out anyway. Mark Ingram was absolutely right in calling himself out for his two fumbles at the end of the game, each giving the Bears a chance to tie things up. Even ignoring those mistakes, the fact that Zach Miller’s catch wasn’t called a catch is baffling. The Saints got very lucky at home to a middling team starting a rookie quarterback. This is still a strong squad, but they can’t afford flat performances right now.
12. Atlanta Falcons (16): That was a very impressive win over the Jets on Sunday. No, seriously. New York is no joke, and winning on the road in terrible weather isn’t too shabby either. This was a gutsy win, the type of performance that will earn victories in the later months of the regular season. The Falcons showed the kind of mental toughness that’s been sorely lacking since last year’s Super Bowl. Just in time too, as an enormous division game against the Panthers is next on the schedule.
13. Detroit Lions (13): They’ve got two big issue holding them back from being a playoff contender: the inability to score in the red zone, and the refusal to give more carries to Ameer Abdullah. Fortunately, I think resolving the latter problem will also fix the former. Jim Caldwell, I know you’re reading this. Please take my advice if you want to grab a wild card spot.
14. Carolina Panthers (18): Carolina needed this one. I mean NEEDED it. With New Orleans pulling further and further away with each passing week, the Panthers had to start pulling games out or risk falling out of the NFC South race completely. Cam Newton hasn’t exactly stepped up, but the defense sure as hell came to play in this one, forcing 3 turnovers and putting Jameis Winston on his back three times.
15. Bryce Harper (15): When does free agency start? Cause Bryce Harper is leaving D.C. as soon as he can. I mean Kirk Cousins is leaving D.C. as soon as he can. I mean… yeah…
16. Tennessee Titans (17): *Bye*
17. Denver Broncos (12): And here I thought the AFC West was going to be really tight this year. The wheels have completely fallen off the Trevor Siemian train, and now it is Brock Osweiler’s turn. Oh goody. Another quarterback who can’t throw the ball 20 yards down the field and makes bad decisions with the ball in his hands. Just what the doctor ordered.
18. Chicago Bears (20): Honestly they played well enough to win, but sometimes the scales don’t tip in your direction in the NFL. Still, Chicago continues to be competitive against stiff competition in the NFC, and that can only be seen as a positive. Mitch Trubisky showed he’s still raw at the moment, but Jordan Howard continued his torrid pace with yet another 100-yard performance. This season probably won’t produce any spectacular results in the Windy City, but the future isn’t so bleak anymore.
19. Houston Texans (14): Tom Savage. ‘Nuff said.
20. Los Angeles Chargers (19): What am I going to do with you, LA? You seemed like you’d finally turned things around during your 3 game winning streak. New England’s defense was still one of weaker units in the league coming into this game, and your own defense was getting stronger and stronger each weak. Joey Bosa and company managed to keep things close enough for a last second drive, but Philip Rivers couldn’t even get the ball into the end zone on his final throw. Now you’ve got to play Jacksonville, Buffalo, and Dallas over the next 3 weeks. The season might be over before you know it.
21. Oakland Raiders (21): Well, this one was disappointing. After a huge win over Kansas City the week before to rekindle their playoff hopes, the Raiders went into Buffalo and proceeded to hand the Bills the football on every drive. Ok, I’m exaggerating, but still. Derek Carr catching the turnover bug is just about the last thing Oakland needed in their quest to pull themselves out of the early hole they’ve dug for themselves.
22. Green Bay Packers (22): *Bye*
23. Baltimore Ravens (27): I want to exercise caution with this team despite their dominant win over Miami last Thursday. Joe Flacco can’t go against Tennessee, then an already weak offense is going to have to seriously overachieve to stay competitive. Yes, the defense is firing on all cylinders right now, and I have no problem with that unit being the strength of the team. But, can Baltimore win games without their defense scoring three touchdowns? Because that sort of thing isn’t going to happen every week.
24. Cincinnati Bengals (25): I can forgive a bad day from Joe Mixon this time, as Indy has quietly fielded the 8^th best rushing offense in the league this season. But if he really wants a Le’Veon Bell-esque workload, his production as a runner has to be a bit better than this. He did pick up 91 yards receiving on the day, so there’s no lack of versatility in his game.
25. Miami Dolphins (23): So about that time I said Miami was in the hunt no matter who was playing quarterback… hehe…
26. New York Jets (26): Play good football, still lose so you can have a chance at a quarterback in next year’s draft. That’s the recipe for future success in New York right now, and I don’t think there’s any shame in that. I really need to formally apologize for making fun of this team so much after week 1.
27. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (24): I think it’s officially time to crown this team the biggest let-down of the 2017 season so far. Jameis Winston has completely failed to take the forward step he needed to make in his third year as the starter. Yes, his shoulder is obviously still bothering him, but that’s not an excuse for his lack of proper decision-making. Maybe next year Tampa. Maybe next year.
28. New York Giants (28): *Bye*
29. Arizona Cardinals (29): *Bye*
30. San Francisco 49ers (31): The acquisition of Jimmy Garoppalo alone is enough to bump this team up a spot. Kyle Shanahan now has the legitimate quarterback talent that he needs to succeed in San Fran. Now they just have to acquire some playmakers to build this offense into something truly special. Don’t think a team can turn it around that quickly? Just look at how the Rams offense has changed since they put actual football players around Jared Goff.
31. Indianapolis Colts (30): Shutting down Andrew Luck was the right thing to do. This team isn’t going anywhere this season, so there’s no harm in sacrificing the present for what will be a better future once Luck returns next year. Plus, now Indy can showcase Jacoby Brissett, who could be a valuable trade chip in the offseason.
32. Cleveland Browns (32): When you’re caught celebrating a trade for AJ McCarron, you know you belong at the bottom of these rankings. Cleveland fans deserve better than this.