The NFL Blog: Power Rankings (After Week 8 and Week 9)

The Horse Collar went through some technical difficulties last week and thus I was unable to get out my power rankings. There are still some lingering technical problems but I will be able to give you my power rankings from last week and for this week.

First off, last week’s rankings:

Power Rankings After Week 8

1. Tennessee 7-0 (1st)
2. New York Giants 6-1 (5th)
3. Washington 6-2 (4th)
4. Carolina 6-2 (7th)
5. Pittsburgh 5-2 (3rd)
6. Philadelphia 4-3 (NR)
7. Buffalo 5-2 (2nd)
8. New England 5-2 (NR)

-Previous week’s ranking in parenthesis;

Out: Tampa Bay (6th); San Diego (8th);

Explanation: After a very stable set of rankings following week 7, my rankings went through a number of changes after week 8. The only thing that remained the same was that the Titans were #1. Tennessee was in the top spot in my power rankings for the 5th consecutive week following their impressive win over the Colts on Monday night. The victory moved them to 7-0 as they remained the only undefeated team in the League. That’s where the stability ended. The other 7 spots in my rankings were all different following week 8. The Bills had been ranked 2nd going into week 8 but I had to drop them significantly after their disappointing 9-point loss in Miami two Sundays ago. They had been in my top 3 for 4 straight weeks but I lowered them 5 spots from the #2 spot all the way to 7th in my week 8 ratings. The previous week I had Pittsburgh ranked 3rd and the Giants ranked 5th but obviously that would change in the wake of New York’s impressive win over the Steelers on the road. The G-Men won one of the hardest hitting games of the season, 21-14, at Heinz Field to go to 6-1 on the year, while the Steelers fell to 5-2. I had been holding back on the Giants for most of the year but to me this was one of the more impressive wins of the season for any team. I moved them ahead of the Bills and Steelers naturally, and seeing as how they had beaten the Redskins in week 1 and had 1 less loss than Washington, I moved them ahead of the Skins as well, bumping them up 3 spots from 5th to 2nd. I moved Washington one spot up from 4th to 3rd following their win over the Lions that got them to 6-2. I had been concerned about Pittsburgh all along because of their health problems and I dropped the Steelers 2 spots from 3rd to 5th in the week 8 rankings. The Panthers came out on top of the Cardinals in a close game at home in week 8 to move to 6-2 on the season and I moved them up 3 spots from 7th to 4th, placing them one spot ahead of the Steelers. For the second week in a row my #6 and #8 teams fell out of the rankings. Actually, it was the 3rd week in a row that the #6 team in my top 8 fell out. This time it was the Bucs who I dropped from the 6th spot out of my power rankings after they scored just 9 points in a loss to the battered Cowboys that left them at 5-3 on the year. Granted, they did lose to a talented team on the road but I just wasn’t that impressed. I expected them to win that game. Vaulting from the land of the unranked to take Tampa’s spot in the number 6 slot in my week 8 power rankings were the Philadelphia Eagles, who got back over .500 at 4-3 with a win over the Falcons at home. The Eagles were struggling for a time but I always thought they were one of the better teams in the League and they were now starting to get healthy. The Chargers were my #1 team going into the season and they had the final spot in my rankings going into week 8 but after they lost to the Saints in London to fall to 3-5 on the year I could no longer justify keeping them in my top 8. Taking their place as the 8th team in my rankings were the previously unranked Patriots. I had been hesitant to think too highly of the Pats ever since their blowout losses to the Dolphins at home and to the Chargers in San Diego. But I was impressed by their week 7 blowout of the Broncos in Denver and they then took care of business at home against a Rams team that had beaten the Skins and the Cowboys in the previous two weeks. With no other better choice, I decided to move the 5-2 Patriots back into my rankings in the number 8 slot.

And now, this week’s rankings:

Power Rankings After Week 9

1. Tennessee 8-0 (1st)
2. New York Giants 7-1 (2nd)
3. Pittsburgh 6-2 (5th)
4. Philadelphia 5-3 (6th)
5. Carolina 6-2 (4th)
6. Washington 6-3 (3rd)
7. Baltimore 5-3 (NR)
8. Arizona 5-3 (NR)

-Previous week’s ranking in parenthesis;

Out: Buffalo (7th); New England (8th);

Explanation: For the 5th straight week 6 of the 8 teams in my top 8 remained in my power rankings and the other 2 teams fell out. Things stayed exactly the same at the very top of my rankings, as the Titans and Giants remained 1 and 2 in my top 8 for a second straight week. Actually, I was closer to moving the Titans out of the top spot than I had been since they moved there following week 4, despite the fact that the Titans won last week to stay unbeaten at 8-0. The Titans had to go to overtime to beat the Packers by a field goal at home but the main reason that I thought twice about keeping them in the top spot was the New York Giants. The Giants beat down the Cowboys 35-14 in week 9 to get to 7-1 on the season and they have been very impressive lately. I still think the Titans are #1 and they hold my top spot for the 6th straight week but the Giants are a very close #2. Once again the teams in the middle of my rankings moved around this week. The team I came away from week 9 the most impressed with was the Steelers after they pounded the Redskins 23-6 on the road on Monday night. They did so without Ben Roethlisberger playing in the second half. Despite all of their injury problems and a brutal schedule, the Steelers are 6-2 at the midway point and I decided to move them up 2 spots in my rankings from 5th to 3rd. The Redskins had been my #3 team going into week 9 but they have been unimpressive ever since their eye opening 4 game win streak when they beat the Saints, the Cardinals, the Cowboys, and the Eagles to go to 4-1. Since then they are 2-2, with lack luster wins over the Browns and Lions, and both of those losses have come at home. Their loss to Pittsburgh dropped them to 6-3 and I dropped them 3 places in my rankings from 3rd to 6th. The Philadelphia Eagles had been my number 6 team going into week 9 when they won easily over the Seahawks to improve to 5-3. The Eagles continue to get healthier and they are now 2 games over .500 for the first time all year. I moved them up 2 spots from 6th to 4th in my top 8 this week. The 6-2 Panthers were idle in week 9 but I decided to move them back a spot from 4th to 5th anyway because I would have to favor the now healthy Eagles over them in a head to head matchup on a neutral field. The two teams that held the final two spots in my rankings in week 8 each fell out of my rankings in week 9. The Bills had fallen from 2nd to 7th in my top 8 the previous week and after their surprising 9-point defeat against the Jets at home I had to drop them completely from rankings. I was a Bills believer for a while. They had been in my rankings for 5 straight weeks. But at this point I’m thinking that they may be a lot closer to mediocre than they once appeared. Taking Buffalo’s spot at #7 and making their debut in the power rankings in week 9 are the Baltimore Ravens, who beat the Browns by 10 on the road last Sunday. I’m not sure how they’ve managed to go 5-3 with a rookie QB and a first year head coach but they have and 2 of their losses are by 3 points in OT at Pittsburgh and by 3 points to the Titans in large part due to a questionable call. The Patriots had been 8th in my rankings in week 8 but I dropped them out of my top 8 again this week despite their respectable showing in a 3-point loss to the Colts on the road on Sunday night. I think the Pats are a capable team without Tom Brady and I think they’ll continue to take care of business against weaker competition but I just don’t think they’re going to beat the top teams with Matt Cassel. Taking New England’s place in my the final spot in my rankings are the Arizona Cardinals, who debut in my rankings at #8. The Cardinals crushed the Rams on the road in week 9 to go to 5-3 this season. Two of their 3 losses are at Washington and at Carolina. I’ve been understandably hesitant to rate the Cardinals among the top teams in the League because of their history and it’s still hard to know how seriously to take them. But at this point there is a big bunch of teams that seem to be about equal to each other and I’m going with Baltimore and Arizona for now.