NFL Power Rankings: Losers That Will Rebound in Week 9

Sunday was a tough day to be a top-tier team in the NFL. It's tough to characterize much as an "upset" or a "disappointment" this season, seeing as how the league seems to go from topsy to turvy and back again from week to week in 2011.

With turnabout being fair play in today's NFL, these three high-profile losers from Week 8 have what it takes to get back on track at the midway point of the campaign.

Dallas Cowboys

This just in, Cowboys fans: the sky is not, in fact, falling. You can walk outside, breathe, even go about your daily lives as you otherwise would have.

If you don't believe me, and don't believe that Dallas can get back on track to make the playoffs, perhaps as the NFC East champ, just wait until you see how Tony Romo and company vent their frustrations on the sad-sack Seattle Seahawks at Cowboys Stadium on Sunday.

Last I checked, Tarvaris Jackson and Marshawn Lynch are, I don't know, a notch or two (or 10) below Michael Vick and LeSean McCoy, the Eagles stars who torched the Cowboys not-so-Big D on national TV by a score of 34-7.

Now, if the Cowboys crumble against the 'Hawks, then you can jam on the panic button.

New Orleans Saints

As bad as Dallas' loss was, no team has more to be ashamed of than the Saints. New Orleans went from racking up 62 points on the winless Colts to barely breaking 20 against the previously-defeated Rams in a 31-21 loss.

The Spirit of St. Louis and the World Series-champion Cardinals seemed to energize the Rams while leaving Drew Brees to wonder what he and his teammates were doing in the Gateway City in the first place.

Certainly, Saints fans are still trying to figure out where Brees was, since his performance (30-of-44 with two picks) would suggest that he wasn't anywhere to be found at the Edward Jones Dome.

Chances are he left his football acumen in the Bayou, to where the Saints will return on Sunday to exact revenge against the Buccaneers in a game that is crucial to their hopes of winning the NFC South.

Chances are, then, that they'll rectify their problems from St. Louis, and Tampa Bay two weeks prior, to get themselves back on track.

New England Patriots

The Patriots have nothing to be ashamed of for losing in Pittsburgh to the resurgent Steelers, though I can't help but wonder if Tom Brady has what it takes to lead his team to another Super Bowl when the defense looks more like a block of Swiss cheese than a steel curtain.

Luckily, New England won't have to worry about that when they host the New York Giants in a rematch of Super Bowl XLII. Big Blue has been maddeningly inconsistent this season, with a home loss to the Seahawks and a narrow victory over the winless Dolphins on their spotty resume.

If nothing else, at least the Pats won't have to worry about David Tyree coming up with an insane catch against his helmet.

Josh Martin's Week 8 NFL Power Rankings

1. Green Bay Packers

2. San Francisco 49ers

3. Pittsburgh Steelers

4. New England Patriots

5. Baltimore Ravens

6. Detroit Lions

7. Atlanta Falcons

8. New York Giants

9. New Orleans Saints

10. Buffalo Bills

11. New York Jets

12. Cincinnati Bengals

13. San Diego Chargers

14. Houston Texans

15. Philadelphia Eagles

16. Chicago Bears

17. Kansas City Chiefs

18. Dallas Cowboys

19. Oakland Raiders

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

21. Tennessee Titans

22. Cleveland Browns

23. Minnesota Vikings

24. Carolina Panthers

25. Washington Redskins

26. Denver Broncos

27. Seattle Seahawks

28. Jacksonville Jaguars

29. Arizona Cardinals

30. Miami Dolphins

31. St. Louis Rams

32. Indianapolis Colts