Yet another dominating performance for the Lions in Week 8. Their 52-14 win over the Tennessee Titans was exactly what Super Bowl contenders need to do: easily dispose of clearly inferior opponents. They were already at the top of some power rankings. Did they climb in others? Here’s the weekly power ranking roundup.
USA Today
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 3
What Nate Davis had to say: “Their 172 points over the past four games are a franchise record, the most by any team over a four-game stretch in five years, and put them on pace to become just the 30th team in league annals to score at least 500 points”
Pro Football Talk
Current rank: 1
Last week’s rank: 1
What Mike Florio had to say: “The curse of Bobby Layne has finally ended.”
ESPN NFL Nation
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 3
What Eric Woodyard had to say: “(Kicker Jake) Bates signed as a free agent with the Lions in June after one season in the UFL and a brief stint with the Texans in 2023. He was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for Week 7 after nailing the game-winning 44-yard field goal with 15 seconds remaining to help Detroit secure a victory at Minnesota. Bates is 11-for-11 on field goals and 27-for-28 on extra points this season.” Each NFL writer was asked which player was the best offseason addition for their respective team.
NFL.com
Current rank: 1
Last week’s rank: 2
What Eric Edholm had to say: “The Lions take over the top spot because they continue to win not only impressively, but seemingly in a different fashion every week. Late in the third quarter on Sunday, the Lions had 49 points and Jared Goff had 57 pass yards. Goff had some tough moments behind a surprisingly leaky Lions offensive line early in the game, but the defense, special teams and run game took care of business in impressive fashion. Five of Detroit’s first 10 possessions started in Tennessee territory, mostly thanks to turnovers forced and long special-teams returns, and the Lions scored touchdowns on all five of those drives. That’s what good teams do. Detroit turned in another good defensive showing without Aidan Hutchinson, and the offense didn’t miss the suspended Jameson Williams in this one. This Sunday’s test at Green Bay will be much stiffer, but the Lions can crank it up as well as any team in the league right now. Dan Campbell’s bunch is a legitimate Super Bowl threat in a muddled NFC field.”
Yahoo Sports
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 2
What Frank Schwab had to say: “Over Detroit’s past five games they have more touchdowns (25) than incompletions (20), the first team since the 1970 merger to do that over a five-game stretch, according to CBS. Yeah, this team is fun to watch.”
CBS Sports
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 4
What Pete Prisco had to say: “They racked up 52 points against the Titans and didn’t need to do a lot on offense. The special teams came up big in that one as they head into a giant division game against the Packers.”
USA Today
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 3
What Nate Davis had to say: “Their 172 points over the past four games are a franchise record, the most by any team over a four-game stretch in five years, and put them on pace to become just the 30th team in league annals to score at least 500 points”
Pro Football Talk
Current rank: 1
Last week’s rank: 1
What Mike Florio had to say: “The curse of Bobby Layne has finally ended.”
ESPN NFL Nation
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 3
What Eric Woodyard had to say: “(Kicker Jake) Bates signed as a free agent with the Lions in June after one season in the UFL and a brief stint with the Texans in 2023. He was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week for Week 7 after nailing the game-winning 44-yard field goal with 15 seconds remaining to help Detroit secure a victory at Minnesota. Bates is 11-for-11 on field goals and 27-for-28 on extra points this season.” Each NFL writer was asked which player was the best offseason addition for their respective team.
NFL.com
Current rank: 1
Last week’s rank: 2
What Eric Edholm had to say: “The Lions take over the top spot because they continue to win not only impressively, but seemingly in a different fashion every week. Late in the third quarter on Sunday, the Lions had 49 points and Jared Goff had 57 pass yards. Goff had some tough moments behind a surprisingly leaky Lions offensive line early in the game, but the defense, special teams and run game took care of business in impressive fashion. Five of Detroit’s first 10 possessions started in Tennessee territory, mostly thanks to turnovers forced and long special-teams returns, and the Lions scored touchdowns on all five of those drives. That’s what good teams do. Detroit turned in another good defensive showing without Aidan Hutchinson, and the offense didn’t miss the suspended Jameson Williams in this one. This Sunday’s test at Green Bay will be much stiffer, but the Lions can crank it up as well as any team in the league right now. Dan Campbell’s bunch is a legitimate Super Bowl threat in a muddled NFC field.”
Yahoo Sports
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 2
What Frank Schwab had to say: “Over Detroit’s past five games they have more touchdowns (25) than incompletions (20), the first team since the 1970 merger to do that over a five-game stretch, according to CBS. Yeah, this team is fun to watch.”
CBS Sports
Current rank: 2
Last week’s rank: 4
What Pete Prisco had to say: “They racked up 52 points against the Titans and didn’t need to do a lot on offense. The special teams came up big in that one as they head into a giant division game against the Packers.”