NFL Power Rankings Week 8: Review and Reaction to 2018 League Standings

There were no real surprises in Week 7's games. As could have been predicted, the Los Angeles Rams destroyed the San Francisco 49ers, the Buffalo Bills couldn't get an offense going, and the Arizona Cardinals only scored 10 points.

The Kansas City Chiefs supplied a bit of a surprise in holding the Cincinnati Bengals to only 10 points, as the Chiefs defense have given up the most yards (3048) so far this season.

A battle between two struggling teams took place in the Monday Night Football matchup, with the Atlanta Falcons coming out on top despite a last-minute touchdown by Odell Beckham Jr. The Falcons beat the New York Giants 23-20, putting the Falcons at a two-game win streak and leaving the Giants 1-6 on the season.

Here's a look at the Week 8 power rankings, along with some analysis on a couple teams' standings.

Week 8 Power Rankings

1. Los Angeles Rams (7-0)

2. Kansas City Chiefs (6-1)

3. Los Angeles Chargers (5-2)

4. New England Patriots (5-2)

5. Minnesota Vikings (4-2-1)

6. New Orleans Saints (5-1)

7. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2-1)

8. Washington Redskins (4-2)

9. Carolina Panthers (4-2)

10. Baltimore Ravens (4-3)

11. Houston Texans (4-3)

12. Green Bay Packers (3-2-1)

13. Cincinnati Bengals (4-3)

14. Detroit Lions (3-3)

15. Denver Broncos (3-4)

16. Chicago Bears (3-3)

17. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-4)

18. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-3)

19. Philadelphia Eagles (3-4)

20. Seattle Seahawks (3-3)

21. Miami Dolphins (4-3)

22. Dallas Cowboys (3-4)

23. Tennessee Titans (3-4)

24. Atlanta Falcons (3-4)

25. New York Jets (3-4)

26. Cleveland Browns (2-4-1)

27. Indianapolis Colts (2-5) 

28. Buffalo Bills (2-5)

29. Arizona Cardinals (1-6)

30. San Francisco 49ers (1-6)

31. New York Giants (1-6)

32. Oakland Raiders (1-5)

New England Patriots Firmly Back in the Top 3

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

After a rough start to the season, going 1-2 in the first three games for the first time since 2012, the Patriots have found themselves back on top. The Patriots seem to have gotten back into a rhythm with the return of one of Tom Brady's favorite receivers, Julian Edelman, and with the addition of Josh Gordon to the team. 

Even without the team's infamous tight end Rob Gronkowski performing well, the Patriots have found success against teams such as Kansas City, which was previously undefeated before taking on New England. The Patriots find themselves on a four-game win streak after the dreaded 1-2 start and have scored 38 points in three of those games. They also put up a whopping 43 points against the Chiefs. 

The Patriots shouldn't have an issue in the next few weeks with their passing game, as among all the receivers Brady now has, James White has proven to be a dual-threat passing back. Sony Michel has also started to make some noise for a New England team that has historically had issues in the backfield, with four touchdowns and two games with more than 100 rushing yards. However, with Michel week-to-week after going down with a knee injury in Sunday's game at Chicago, New England will either have to find another option at back or rely heavily on its receivers.

Houston Texans Jump to Just Outside the Top 10

Sam Greenwood/Getty Images

The Houston Texans had a horrible start to the 2018 season, being one of two teams that went winless in the first three weeks. The Texans fell to the Patriots by a touchdown, to the Titans by a field goal, and allowed the New York Giants their one win of the season so far. 

Since this start, the Texans have gone on to win four in a row and put themselves first in the AFC South. Deshaun Watson played through injuries this past week to lead his team past a Jacksonville Jaguars defense that has been struggling as of late. 

In Sunday's win over Jacksonville, Watson left no doubt that despite injuries he is a man capable of building a team that could become a fair contender in the playoffs. Watson had help from running back Lamar Miller, who had 100 rushing yards and a touchdown against the Jaguars. DeAndre Hopkins finished off the trip with 50 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Houston has even found some success with its defense and special teams. It has a rush defense in the top 10, allowing 645 yards to backs and only one rushing touchdown on the season, the second least in the league. Its pass defense sits at the middle of the pack. The defense sacked Jacksonville's Blake Bortles 4 times on Sunday and recovered two fumbles he lost.

The Texans can hope to extend this win streak at home in the coming week against a Miami Dolphins team that is dealing with injuries and has proven to be inconsistent this season. After that, the team will be put to test against some tougher teams such as the Denver Broncos and the Washington Redskins.

Oakland Raiders Fall Behind San Francisco and into Last Place

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

Oakland has had a slew of issues, putting them last behind a San Francisco team that lost its star quarterback. The Raiders were already having trouble getting anything going on offense before their veteran running back Marshawn Lynch, who led the team with 376 rushing yards and three touchdowns, went down with a groin injury in the Raiders' 27-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. 

Lynch has been put on injured reserve, guaranteeing he wont be back until Week 16 and depriving the team of their top running back. However, with the veteran's age, it is unclear whether he will return at all, especially since his two-year contract will be up after this season. This leaves Oakland's backfield in disarray, with the Raiders hoping Doug Martin will fill the hole that Lynch left.

On top of that, Oakland has now traded away one of their top wide receivers, Amari Cooper, to the Dallas Cowboys for a 2019 first-round pick. Cooper joined Jordy Nelson and Jared Cook as Derek Carr's go-to receivers. Cooper had 280 yards and a touchdown on the season, averaging 12.7 yards per reception. 

The future for Oakland is unclear despite retaining its top two receivers in Cook and Nelson. The Raiders will face two equally struggling opponents in the next two games—the 49ers and the Indianapolis Colts—and can hopefully find some rhythm again in their offense before facing the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 10.

Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com.