Week 8 NFL Power Rankings

Another week of action and 4 teams undefeated went to 3 teams as the Vikings fell to the defending champs. The Colts and the Saints remain the best two teams while the Broncos are still in the debate with no losses. The Patriots and Steelers have slowly entered the conversion and look very good. While the Giants continue to struggle on defense and slipped again this week. The bad continue to play really bad and the three winless teams round out the bottom of the rankings.

2009 Power Rankings (going into Week 8):

1.(1) Colts (6-0): They continue to roll. The 49ers are next. Undefeated might not happen, but 12 wins looks very likely again.
2.(4) Saints (6-0): This is what the Saints needed to do: come from behind. Now this team can do it all.
3.(4) Broncos (6-0): An off week is nice, but the Ravens will be a stiff test to continue the season.
4.(3) Vikings (6-1): They kept it close, but the Steelers' forced turnovers that decided the game. Better to lose now than later.
5.(6) Patriots (5-2): Two weeks. Two blowouts. They now get a bye. How nice.
6.(5) Giants (5-2): They looked like a Superbowl team after 5 weeks. Now after two weeks, they look very average and poor on defense.
7.(9) Steelers (5-2): The champs showed how good they are and have rebounded nicely after their 1-2 start. Repeat once again looks very possible.
8.(8) Bengals (5-2): Cedric Benson got his revenge and then some. This team is turning heads each week.
9.(7) Falcons (4-2): Two losses to two very likely playoff teams. They are still good and will be around when it counts.
10.(12) Eagles (4-2): They didn't look especially great on offense again, but when you play the Redskins you don't need to do too much.
11.(17) Cowboys (4-2): Now this looks like a playoff team. Romo to Austin might be a new household tandem by season's end.
12.(16) Cardinals (4-2): This team again is tough to figure out, but they are showing they can beat good teams on the road.
13.(10) Packers (4-2): They were able to showcase their passing game and right some of their protection problems against a bad Browns team.
14.(13) Ravens (3-3): This team is better than 3-3 and will be fired up for the 6-0 Broncos.
15.(18) Jets (4-3): They were so ahead in the second half that Mark Sanchez had time to eat a hot dog. Let's see which Jets' team shows up next week.
16.(11) Bears (3-3): They started strong, but were dominated by the Bengals in the fashion that they used to dominate teams: running over opponents.
17.(15) Chargers (3-3): They righted some of their errors by taking advantage of a weak Chiefs' team.
18.(19) Texans (4-3): They almost let the 49ers come back, but they have their best start with a win next week.
19.(21) Dolphins (2-4): They played the Saints very well for the first half, but gave the game away with costly turnovers and drops in the second half.
20.(14) 49ers (3-3): Alex Smith to Vernon Davis could get this team back on track fast. The Colts are a stiff test next week though.
21.(20) Jaguars (3-3): They get the 0-6 Titans. They best be on upset alert.
22.(24) Bills (3-4): They aren't playing great; just taking advantages of mistakes by their opponents.
23.(22) Seahawks (2-4): Injuries are continuing to hurt this team.
24.(23) Panthers (2-4): They are supposed to beat the bad teams. If they can't do that, then they are in trouble.
25.(26) Redskins (2-5): All the changes in the world aren't going to fix this team this year.
26.(25) Raiders (2-5): Just when you think they can't get worse; they go and prove you wrong. Maybe a QB change couldn't hurt.
27.(27) Lions (1-5): The Lions come off a bye with a game against the Rams. The stinkerbowl might give them a second win.
28.(28) Chiefs (1-6): The rebuilding and improving continues. They need to play better defense to at least give their offense a chance.
29.(29) Browns (1-6): This offense may go down as one of the worse. They can't even get over 100 yards passing.
30.(30) Titans (0-6): They have the Jaguars off a bye. They can get in the win column if they wrangle the running game and let theirs flourishing.
31.(31) Buccaneers (0-7): They went to London and continued to get blown out. A bye guarantees they don't lose.
32.(32) Rams (0-7): They have a very good shot to win against the Lions.

The season is nearing the half way point and teams will begin to separate into contenders and pretenders very soon.