NFL Power Rankings: Week 8

Previous Power Rankings

TW	LW	Team	Our Take
1	3	(6-1)	The Patriots are hitting their stride at the right time. Bill Belichick continues to find effective roles for unheralded players such as Danny Woodhead and Brandon Tate. Belichick will be laughing when the Vikings finally release Randy Moss; the Pats got a third-round pick for a guy that didn't even last a month in Minnesota. That's what you call a steal.
2	5	(5-2)	The Ravens benefited by sitting out for the week, as both the Steelers and the Jets suffered tough losses. Baltimore has been playing well on both sides of the ball but need Joe Flacco and Ray Rice to take their games to the next level if they want to contend in the very tough AFC this season.
3	1	(5-2)	Ben Roethlisberger couldn’t get in rhythm against the aggressive Saints defence. The offence failed to manufacture anything, which had the defence gasping for air in the fourth quarter. The Steelers defence continue to deliver punishing hits, which may lead to yet another fine for linebacker James Harrison.
4	5	(5-2)	With significant injuries on both sides of the ball, Peyton Manning didn’t miss a beat with two of his favorite targets out of the lineup. Dwight Freeney was stellar, racking up two sacks and a game-clinching forced fumble. The injuries continued to mount Monday night, but the "next man up" system helped the Colts win a very important divisional game.
5	2	(5-2)	Coming out of its bye week, the Jets offence looked rusty as they were shut out for the first time since 2006. Mark Sanchez appeared out of sync with his receivers and lacked the command and accuracy that he’s shown all season.
6	7	(5-2)	After a rough start the Giants might be the most complete team in the NFC. The Giants’ defensive linemen will be licking their chops all week as they head west to take on an injury-riddled Seahawks offensive line.
7	8	(5-2)	The Falcons come out of its bye week with a big divisional game against the red hot Bucs. Matt Ryan and Roddy White are on pace for their best statistical seasons, but the stifling play of the young defence has been the biggest surprise. Mike Smith needs to be in consideration for the coach of the year award.
8	13	(5-3)	After a sluggish start to the season, the Packers put together one of the more impressive performances of the season with a shutout road victory over the Jets. Clay Matthews has been getting most of the attention but the unsung hero of the defence was cornerback Tramon Williams, who is on the verge of receiving a large contract extension.
9	15	(5-3)	The Saints blitz-heavy defence was in dominant fashion in their impressive victory over Pittsburgh. New Orleans forced two turnovers and stopped the Steelers on a crucial goal-line stand. Brees struggled at first, but went 20/22 in the second half and led the Saints to two fourth-quarter touchdowns.
10	9	(4-3)	Dan Carpenter has provided the majority of the Dolphins offence with 10 field goals in the past two games. Miami has yet another tough road game in Baltimore Sunday, but with a 4-0 road record, this team may be up to the challenge.
11	10	(5-2)	The Chiefs were incredibly lucky to come up with a victory against Buffalo. On a weekly basis, Matt Cassel continues to show that he’s not the quarterback of the future. Romeo Crennel has done an excellent job this season as the play of Tamba Hali and Brandon Flowers have had a huge impact on the Chiefs impressive turnaround.
12	6	(5-3)	Tough week for the Titans. It’s never easy to win on the road, but even tougher when your quarterback and top receiver go down with injuries. Vince Young needs the bye week to rest his sprained ankle, but Kenny Britt has a severely injured hamstring and could up to miss a month.
13	13	(4-3)	The Eagles come out out its bye week with new life as Michael Vick returns from injury. Kevin Kolb may have been impressive during his three starts, but Vick gives the Eagles the best chance at competing in the wide open NFC race.
14	22	(4-4)	The Raiders seem to have turned the corner with blowout victories in back-to-back games. The defence flat-out manhandled Seattle’s offensive line as they finished with eight sacks on Matt Hasselbeck. The Raiders have a huge divisional match-up with KC and a win would put them right in the thick of things in the AFC West.
15	17	(5-2)	The Bucs keep finding ways to win; even though the team has yet to defeat a formidable opponent. Mark Dominik and Raheem Morris have done an excellent job positioning this team for the future as young players such as LeGarrette Blount and Aqib Talib were the stars in Tampa’s road victory over Arizona.
16	11	(4-3)	The final score was deceiving as the Texans were compelely outplayed by undermanned Colts team. Matt Schaub needs to play better in big games if the Texans want to finally get over the hump. Andre Johnson deserves some serious recognition for making some incredibly tough catches on an injured ankle.
17	24	(3-5)	We’ve been hard on Norv Turner all season, but he deserves a lot of credit for giving the Chargers an inspiring halftime speech that completely changed the mentality of his team. Philip Rivers continues to put up outstanding numbers as he finished with his 5th 300 yard game of the season.
18	18	(4-3)	The Bears hopefully spent time during its bye week figuring out what’s wrong with the woeful offensive line. Somehow, the Bears are still in the mix in the NFC North but need improved play from Jay Cutler and Julius Peppers if they plan on making any sort of playoff push.
19	23	(4-4)	The improved play of the Rams has been one of the biggest surprises of the season. Sam Bradford and an impressive defense have turned the Rams into a fiery, competitive team. With the Seahawks injury problems and the Cardinals quarterback issues, the Rams just might be the favourite in the NFC West race.
20	14	(4-4)	The Redskins may be improved but until they can find a way to beat the Lions, we can’t take them too seriously. The Redskins offence is really struggling as Donovan McNabb just doesn’t look like the Pro Bowl quarterback that we remember from Philadelphia.
21	16	(4-3)	It will be tough for Seattle to recover from the injury to Red Bryant, as he's been the key in their defensive scheme and impressive run defence. Without Russell Okung, the Seahawks offensive line was discraseful and Matt Hasselbeck is still feeling the wrath from the beating he suffered from the Oakland Raiders.
22	21	(2-5)	The Browns aren’t catching many breaks this season as they come out of their bye week with back-to-back match-ups with AFC East powerhouses. After a tough start, Cleveland’s young players are starting to show up to finally give their fans some hope for the future.
23	27	(4-4)	It’s tough to credit the Jags too much for its win over the hapless Cowboys, but David Garrard had a standout performance in his return from injury. Garrard used big targets Mercedes Lewis and Mike Sims-Walker very effectively, which opened up the ground game for star running back Maurice Jones-Drew.
24	28	(2-5)	They may be young and inexperienced but the Lions appear to have the right formula in place. Calvin Johnson leads the NFL in receiving touchdowns and Ndamukong Suh continues to make his case for the defensive rookie of the year award as he finished with two sacks and a touchdown against the Redskins.
25	19	(2-5)	Things are spiraling out of control in Minnesota. Under Brad Childress, the Vikings are reaching an Al Davis level of dysfunction. After the Randy Moss fiasco, it’s time to put Vikings players and fans out of their mystery and pull the plug on the Childress era.
26	20	(2-5)	To quote the great Don Matthews: Teams are either getting better or getting worse, and the Bengals are clearly getting worse. The team continues to play uninspired football as Chad Ochocinco and Cedric Benson are struggling to make any sort of impact. Marvin Lewis has a lot of work to do.
27	26	(3-4)	Still find it hard to believe that Matt Leinart couldn’t beat out Derek Anderson and Max Hall. Hall may have impressive leadership qualities but he doesn’t look like an NFL quarterback. The arm strength and accuracy just isn’t there. Tough time to be Larry Fitzgerald.
28	32	(2-6)	Niners fans finally have something to be excited about as the Alex Smith era may be coming close to an end. Troy Smith may not be the smartest quarterback, but hes a playmaker and gives the woeful offence the spark that they've been lacking.
29	25	(1-6)	It has become really ugly in the Big D. The Cowboys appear mentally checked out and look like they’ve given up on head coach Wade Phillips. Mid-season firings don’t generally work, but it’s time for Jerry Jones to make a change.
30	29	(2-6)	Can anyone figure out what the heck is going on in Denver? Kyle Orton has been playing admirably but until the Broncos can learn to run the football or stop the run, they will continue to lose games in an ugly fashion. If this keeps up, does it become time for Josh McDaniels to hand the keys to first-round pick Tim Tebow?
31	31	(0-7)	For the second straight week, the Bills played a heck of a game on the road but came up on the short end. The Bills have an uncanny ability to find ways to lose winnable games, and it’s become painful to watch the team consistently shoot themselves in the foot. Chan Gailey, you have to manage the clock better.
32	30	(1-6)	After making some strides in their victory over San Francisco, the Panthers quickly reverted back to their form from earlier this season. Jonathan Stewart was held to a measly 30 yards on 14 carries against St. Louis. If the dismal play continues, it will likely be the end for head coach John Fox’s tenure in Carolina.

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NFL Power Rankings: Week 8

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