NFL Week 8 power rankings: Lions land in basement after loss to Cowboys

The Detroit Lions (1-5) are coming off another loss where one side of the ball let the other down. After the Lions defense played their best game of the season against the Dallas Cowboys, the offense failed to score a touchdown—for the second game in a row—and turned the ball over five times in the second half.

The national analysts responded by dropping the Lions into the 30s in most power rankings, save the good folks at Monday Morning Quarterback, who still believe there are seven worse teams in the NFL right now.

Let’s take a look at this week’s NFL power rankings.

MMQB: 25 (Previous: 24)

From Conor Orr:

“The Lions absolutely squandered a good opportunity on Sunday and Dan Campbell knows it (so does his headset). While the defense played better for three quarters, this has been the stroy of the Lions’ season to date. Moments of brilliance counterweighted by untimely miscues.”

The Ringer: 30 (Previous: 28)

From Austin Gayle:

“After starting the season off hot with the fifth-ranked offense in EPA per drive (0.74) through the first four weeks, the Lions have crashed back down to earth in recent weeks. Detroit ranks 32nd in the same statistic (-1.82) since Week 5; the offense has scored just six points in the past two games. Injuries to running back D’Andre Swift and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown have obviously contributed to the inefficiency, but the recent offensive woes start with QB Jared Goff. He ranks last in EPA per dropback (-0.33) among the 27 quarterbacks with 60 or more dropbacks since Week 5.”

USA Today: 31 (Previous: 27)

From Nate Davis:

“RB Jamaal Williams’ first career lost fumble came at a rather inopportune time – first-and-goal from the 1-yard line – in Sunday’s loss at Dallas. But it kept alive a new streak: Detroit, which scored at least one TD in this season’s first 11 quarters, hasn’t found the end zone in the last eight.”

NFL.com: 31 (Previous: 28)

From Dan Hanzus:

“The Lions returned to competitive football after their pre-bye thumping at Foxborough, but the results remain the same for the Fightin’ Campbells. Five turnovers by the offense were too much to overcome in a 24-6 loss to the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. The cruelest giveaway? A goal-line fumble by Jamaal Williams when Detroit appeared poised to take a lead in the fourth quarter. “I’m frustrated because we’re losing, just like I was last year,” said Campbell. “But I’m not down, I’m not losing confidence. I’m not going to go hide in a corner.” A fact the coach might want to hide under a Honolulu blue rug at team headquarters: The Lions fell to 4-18-1 in his tenure.”

Yahoo Sports: 31 (Previous: 28)

From Frank Schwab:

“The Lions were winning at the Vikings with 1:14 left in Week 3. They were 74 seconds from being 2-1, in a game they controlled, after an offseason of hope. They decided to try a long field goal, which coach Dan Campbell later said was a mistake, missed that field goal and the Vikings came back to win. Since the moment Campbell decided to try that field goal, the Lions have been outscored 108-51 (and 45 of those Lions points came in one game) and they went from being on the verge of 2-1 to 1-5. Campbell, who went 3-13-1 last season, might not be able to survive another three- or four-win season.”

The Athletic: 31 (Previous: 28)

From Bo Wulf:

“At least the Lions found a different way to lose Sunday, with their previously 32nd-ranked defense holding up against the Cowboys while their once-powerful offense faded.”

ESPN: 31 (Previous: 31)

From Eric Woodyard:

“The Lions’ defense has been really bad. Yes, they’ve seen improvement week-to-week, but they’re still allowing a league-high 32.33 points per game. The offense and defense have failed to get on the same page at any point this season, but even if they’re putting up big points, the defense has to be able to stop the other team — this is a big reason for the 1-5 record.”

Sporting News: 32 (Previous: 31)

From Vinnie Iyer:

“The Lions, after all their “Hard Knocks” feel-good hype, are now back down in dumps from their past under Dan Campbell. Their defense isn’t stopping anything when needed and the offense keeps cracking with injuries.”

CBS Sports: 32 (Previous: 31)

From Pete Prisco:

“The optimism from the summer and Hard Knocks, coupled with the early offensive showing, has faded in a big way. Dan Campbell faces a real challenge getting this thing turned around.”

Touchdown Wire: TBD (Previous: 29)

From Mark Lane:

Touchdown Wire had not updated its rankings for this week at the time of our publishing. We will update when their rankings become available.