9. Minnesota Vikings (6-1)
The Minnesota Vikings lost their first game of the 2026 NFL Season, dropping a home game to Detroit. The Vikings have struggled on offense this year, as we just have not seen this unit come into its own yet. Minnesota has been getting by with their defense thus far, and we really did see the team run out of its own magic in Week 8.
I would not be shocked if the Vikings made some sort of trade deadline move for a running back, as they do have the pass-catching talent, and plenty of it. Kyler Murray, while not a great QB, is perfectly capable of leading a competent offense, so you almost wonder if this offense at some point just simply gets better, whether or not they make an addition.
The Vikings tumble a bit in our power rankings and definitely looked a bit human in Week 8. This loss also muddies the NFC North a good bit, which makes for a very interesting second-half stretch in the division.
8. Seattle Seahawks (4-3)
Seattle plays on Monday Night Football
The Seattle Seahawks made a huge trade recently, adding a future Hall of Fame guard in Quenton Nelson to the mix, and they might not be done. It’s clear that Seattle has taken a step back on offense, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t a good team and can’t again make a deep playoff run.
The front office clearly wants to be aggressive, as the addition of Nelson and the return of their running backs should instantly boost this run game, which has been one of the main missing pieces here.
Quarterback Sam Darnold has not looked good this year at all. In fact, he’s largely been bad, but the Seahawks did just win a Super Bowl with him under center and surely understand what they have to do in order to do that again.
This is still a very good, perhaps even intimidating team despite the so-so 4-3 record. Their Monday Night Football showdown against Chicago will tell us a lot.
7. Detroit Lions (5-2)
This was a heck of a win by the Detroit Lions. It was flat-out phenomenal. While it wasn’t pretty, the Lions managed to rack up 384 total yards of offense and 5.6 yards per play on a stout Minnesota defense, rushing for 230 yards in the process.
The Lions are for real, as the defense has definitely begun to step up, and the offense continues to be excellent under Jared Goff, who should be at the top, or near the top of the NFL MVP race. Now sitting at 5-2 on the year, the Lions just made things a lot more interesting in the NFC North and rise in our power rankings.
Coming up, Detroit plays Miami, New England, and Tampa Bay, so they do have a chance to go on a run here. They’ve now won three games in a row and have done it in multiple ways, which is a clear mark of a good football team. This was a massive win.
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