NFL Power Rankings 2018: Week 9 Standings, Team Stats and Season Review

If the first eight weeks of the NFL season symbolize a season-long trend, this campaign will be remembered for an unprecedented scoring surge.

Unsurprisingly, the top three offensive teams (the Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints) have a combined 21-2 record.

We'll take a look at some notable team stats in the midst of a season review below in addition to providing some Week 9 power rankings and conference standings. Note that the teams in the latter grouping are organized in order of playoff ranking and not via winning percentage.

Week 9 NFL Power Rankings 

1. Los Angeles Rams (8-0)

2. Kansas City Chiefs (7-1)

3. New Orleans Saints (6-1)

4. New England Patriots (5-2)

5. Los Angeles Chargers (5-2)

6. Washington Redskins (5-2)

7. Carolina Panthers (5-2)

8. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2-1)

9. Cincinnati Bengals (5-3)

10. Houston Texans (5-3)

11. Chicago Bears (4-3)

12. Seattle Seahawks (4-3)

13. Minnesota Vikings (4-3-1)

14. Green Bay Packers (3-3-1)

15. Baltimore Ravens (4-4)

16. Philadelphia Eagles (4-4)

17. Miami Dolphins (4-4)

18. Dallas Cowboys (3-4)

19. Atlanta Falcons (3-4)

20. Detroit Lions (3-4)

21. Tennessee Titans (3-4)

22. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-5)

23. New York Jets (3-5)

24. Indianapolis Colts (3-5)

25. Denver Broncos (3-5)

26. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)

27. Cleveland Browns (2-5-1)

28. Buffalo Bills (2-6)

29. Arizona Cardinals (2-6)

30. Oakland Raiders (1-6)

31. New York Giants (1-7)

32. San Francisco 49ers (1-7)

Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images

Week 9 AFC Standings

1. Kansas City Chiefs (7-1, AFC West leader)

2. New England Patriots (6-2, AFC East leader)

3. Pittsburgh Steelers (4-2-1, AFC North leader)

4. Houston Texans (5-3, AFC South leader)

5. Los Angeles Chargers (5-2, AFC Wild Card)

6. Cincinnati Bengals (5-3, AFC Wild Card)

7. Baltimore Ravens (4-4)

8. Miami Dolphins (4-4)

9. Tennessee Titans (3-4)

10. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-5)

11. New York Jets (3-5)

12. Indianapolis Colts (3-5)

13. Denver Broncos (3-5)

14. Cleveland Browns (2-5-1)

15. Buffalo Bills (2-6)

16. Oakland Raiders (1-6)

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Week 9 NFC Standings 

1. Los Angeles Rams (8-0, NFC West leader)

2. New Orleans Saints (6-1, NFC South leader)

3. Washington Redskins (5-2, NFC East leader)

4. Chicago Bears (4-3, NFC North leader)

5. Carolina Panthers (5-2, NFC Wild Card)

6. Seattle Seahawks (4-3, NFC Wild Card)

7. Minnesota Vikings (4-3-1)

8. Green Bay Packers (3-3-1)

9. Philadelphia Eagles (4-4)

10. Atlanta Falcons (3-4)

11. Dallas Cowboys (3-4)

12. Detroit Lions (3-4)

13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)

14. Arizona Cardinals (2-6)

15. San Francisco 49ers (1-7)

16. New York Giants (1-7)

Adam Bettcher/Getty Images

Notable Team Stats and Season Review

NFL: No. 1 All Time in Team Scoring (24.1) and Yardage (363.5)

NFL teams averaged 7.1 points per game in 1923. Obviously times have changed a little bit in the past 95 seasons, but the jump from just last season to this year has been astounding.

Scoring has increased by 2.4 points per game since 2017. A jump that vast hasn't occurred in 60 years, as NFL average scoring rose by 2.8 points between 1957 and 1958.

Furthermore, teams have averaged 350 or more yards per game just twice before (2015 and 2016). At the current 2018 rate, this would mark the first time teams posted 360 yards or better.

The increase in scoring is due to a variety of factors. For one, innovative offensive minds like Rams head coach Sean McVay have helped advance the game. An increase in offense-friendly rules to make the game safer is another, as is the influx of talented quarterbacks.

In sum, the scoring increase looks like the new norm, although the question remains as to whether the jumps continue in future years or flatline.

Kansas City Chiefs: No. 1 in Points Per Game (36.3) and Yards Per Play (6.9)

The Kansas City Chiefs will finish third all time in team scoring per game at their current rate, trailing only the 2013 Denver Broncos and 2007 New England Patriots. Two of the best quarterbacks of all time (Peyton Manning and Tom Brady) led those teams, respectively, and the Chiefs' current signal-caller could one day join them on that lofty perch.

Patrick Mahomes has been near-invincible all season. He leads the league with 26 touchdown passes and 2,526 passing yards. An uber-talented group of skill-position players helps him, as wideouts Tyreek Hill and Sammy Watkins, tight end Travis Kelce and running back Kareem Hunt all have 500 scrimmage yards or more.

The 7-1 Chiefs' only loss was to Brady and the 6-2 Patriots in a 43-40 road defeat. Remarkably, the Chiefs record has been achieved even though the team has allowed the 12th-most points in football. Do defenses really matter as much anymore? We'll find out as the season progresses.

Los Angeles Rams: No. 1 in Point Differential (Plus-109)

No team has been more dominant than the undefeated Rams, who are the only team to outscore their opponents by 100 or more points this year. For context, the Chiefs are No. 2 (plus-85), while no other team is at plus-55 or above.

The Rams have an edge on the Chiefs and Saints, in that their defense bends but doesn't break. L.A. is in the bottom 10 of the league in most yards allowed per play (5.8), but the Rams also do a good job keeping teams off the scoreboard, ranking sixth in fewest points allowed per game.

Nine more NFL weeks and a postseason still need to play themselves out, but the Rams could end up being the No. 1 storyline of this season, much like their 1999 predecessors were when the "Greatest Show on Turf" revolutionized football before winning a Super Bowl.

New Orleans Saints: No. 1 in Pass Completion Rate (77.2%) and Drive Success Rate (56.9%)

The New Orleans Saints are a historical model of passing efficiency. The average pass-completion rate this season is 64.8 percent (another all-time high), and the Saints crush that with their 77.2-percent mark. Of course, quarterback Drew Brees deserves much of the credit, but so does his talented crew of pass-catchers led by wideout Michael Thomas and running back Alvin Kamara.

Drive success rate is defined as the percentages of drives that end in a field goal or touchdown for the offensive team. Not only is New Orleans first in that category, but the Saints are just one of three NFL teams to score on more than half of their drives. 

Unsurprisingly, the other two are the Chiefs and Rams. To put their successes in context, no other team scores more than 45.5 percent of the time, and only 11 teams have rates of 40 percent or more.

Given the Rams' and Saints' efficiency, an NFC Championship Game showdown almost seems inevitable. But the two will also square off Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET.