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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Tim Weaver

NFL Power Rankings Week 8: Ravens and Eagles surging, Seahawks up 1

Every team that we put at the top of these rankings seems to lose the following week, sometimes in embarrassing fashion. The latest victims of our first-place curse are the Detroit Lions, who we went out on a limb for last week by ranking them at the No. 1 spot going into Week 7. Naturally, they got pulverized by the Baltimore Ravens by 32 points on Sunday.

As long as we have the power to curse teams by ranking them No. 1, we promise to use it only for good. Primarily that means using it against the San Francisco 49ers. While they lost last week to the Cleveland Browns it was only by a missed field goal and the epidemic of poor officiating had something to do with it, as well.

Truthfully, they were still probably deserving of the top spot despite the loss. We always admit when we’re wrong and in this case we were incorrect to demote them because the 49ers are definitely the best team in the NFL right now.

Biggest winners this week

Thanks to their crushing win over Detroit, Baltimore is up five spots and now in the top five for the first time this season. Lamar Jackson looks spectacular now that he has a decent offensive line, a quality receiver corps and a pass-first playcaller for the first time in his career. Still a threat with his legs, Jackson’s game is just now starting to fulfill its awesome potential – five years removed from his MVP campaign.

More Bird Brother success

The Ravens weren’t the only bird-themed team to earn a big win this week. The Philadelphia Eagles scored a huge victory over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday Night Football, also earning themselves a five-spot rise in the rankings. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Falcons got a boost by upsetting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Seahawks up one spot

The one exception to the bird-brother rule was the Arizona Cardinals. While they put up a decent fight, their lack of weapons bit them badly in the second half against what is suddenly a dominant Seattle defense. As good as they looked on that side of the ball, we could only raise the Seahawks one spot in this week’s rankings. Until they either get another convincing win against a true contender (they’re about to face several in a row) or their offense manages to produce literally anything in the second half they’re not going to break back into the top 10.

Revenge of the really bad teams

The biggest surprises this week came from several teams who have been hovering near the bottom of our rankings. The New England Patriots, Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears all managed to win on Sunday. That might say more about their opponents than it does about them, but in any case all three got a sizable boost. Meanwhile, the teams they beat earned commensurate drops.

Here’s how we rank all 32 teams heading into Monday night’s game between the Vikings and the No. 1 ranked 49ers, who should definitely win…

32
Carolina Panthers (0-6) - Last week: 30

(Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

31
Arizona Cardinals (1-6) - Last week: 29

(Photo by Jane Gershovich/Getty Images)

30
Las Vegas Raiders (3-4) - Last week: 25

Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports

29
Washington Commanders (3-4) - Last week: 24

Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

28
New York Giants (2-5) - Last week: 32

Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

27
New England Patriots (2-5) - Last week: 31

Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

26
Tennessee Titans (2-4) - Last week: 26

Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

25
Green Bay Packers (2-4) - Last week: 23

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

24
Denver Broncos (2-5) - Last week: 28

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

23
Chicago Bears (2-5) - Last week: 27

Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports

22
Minnesota Vikings (2-4) - Last week: 22

Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

21
New Orleans Saints (3-4) - Last week: 20

Matthew Hinton-USA TODAY Sports

20
Los Angeles Chargers (2-4) - Last week: 16

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

19
Houston Texans (3-3) - Last week: 19

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

18
Indianapolis Colts (3-4) - Last week: 17

Jenna Watson/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

17
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-3) - Last week: 13

Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

16
Atlanta Falcons (4-3) - Last week: 21

Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

15
New York Jets (3-3) - Last week: 15

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

14
Los Angeles Rams (3-4) - Last week 14

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

13
Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2) - Last week: 18

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

12
Buffalo Bills (4-3) - Last week: 11

Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports

11
Seattle Seahawks (4-2) - Last week: 12

Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

10
Cincinnati Bengals (3-3) - Last week: 10

(Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)

9
Miami Dolphins (5-2) - Last week: 4

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

8
Detroit Lions (5-2) - Last week: 1

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

7
Cleveland Browns (4-2) - Last week: 8

Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

6
Dallas Cowboys (4-2) - Last week: 6

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

5
Jacksonville Jaguars (5-2) - Last week: 5

Matthew Hinton-USA TODAY Sports

4
Baltimore Ravens (5-2) - Last week: 9

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

3
Kansas City Chiefs (6-1) - Last week: 4

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

2
Philadelphia Eagles (6-1) - Last week: 7

(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

1
San Francisco 49ers (5-1) - Last week: 2

Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
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