Week 8 of the 2020 NFL Season produced many upsets. A bevy of teams are all over the place as far as their standing within the Power Rankings are. However, the best and worst teams are still pretty apparent. Without further ado, here is Four Up and Four Down after 2020 NFL Week 8.
Pittsburgh Steelers Solidify Top Power Ranking Spot After 2020 NFL Week 8
In a 2020 NFL Season that has had its share of uncertainty, the Pittsburgh Steelers are the only undefeated team standing after Week 8. They went into Baltimore and beat the Ravens 28-24. They have many options at receiver, a great offensive line, a good running back, and a good defense. Ben Roethlisberger is also the most experienced quarterback in the conference. Put that together with a good coach in Mike Tomlin and you have a Super Bowl contender. There are many Yinzers that should be hyped up for this team. After years with dealing with team drama, they have taken on the personality of the quintessential Pittsburgh Steelers team.
2. Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs took care of business on Sunday, dispatching the New York Jets 35-9. Patrick Mahomes had five touchdown passes and torched the Jets secondary. Kansas City may have to play a first-round playoff game since the Steelers are undefeated. That being said, the two teams look very evenly matched on paper. Expect an AFC Championship game in either Pittsburgh or Kansas City in January.
3. Seattle Seahawks
Russell Wilson threw four touchdown passes and “returned to MVP form” on Sunday. He was already at MVP form. Wilson just had some unlucky interceptions in Seattle’s loss to Arizona last week. There is really no question that Wilson is carrying this team. They were missing both Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde in their 37-27 victory over the 49ers. The Seattle defense played better, even though they allowed garbage-time points late in the game. Seattle has a test in Week 9, as they travel to Buffalo to take on the Bills.
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2020 NFL Week 8 ended with a closer game that people expected between the Buccaneers and Giants. Nonetheless, the Buccaneers squeaked by 25-23 and take the number four spot in the power rankings this week. The Buccaneers need to find more consistency on offense. In their last four games they have had two great games and two mediocre games. One of the many things Tom Brady is helping them with is limiting turnovers. That factor is giving their opportunistic defense chances to take advantage of opponents. They were able to do that against Daniel Jones this week, but they may have a tougher time doing that to Drew Brees next week.
There is not much separation between the fourth-ranked Buccaneers and teams such as the Saints, Colts, and Cardinals. However, Tampa Bay has been the most convincing out of all four teams in their wins. That is why they claimed the fourth spot this week. The other three teams listed are not far behind though.
Four Down: Same Few Teams Cannot Get Out of Their Own Ways After 2020 NFL Week 8
29. Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys were running a ton of gimmick plays on Sunday night against the Eagles with rookie Ben DiNucci in at quarterback. Mike McCarthy was trying to find any way for the offense to get something going. It was a respectable performance by the Cowboys defense (coupled with a bad performance from Carson Wentz), but the Cowboys still fell short to their NFC East foes 23-9. Ezekiel Elliott has not showed the ability to carry this team. Elliott playing well is the only conceivable way the Cowboys keep it competitive against the Steelers next week.
30. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars had a bye in 2020 NFL Week 8. They are still in the thick of the Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes. All it takes for them would be a few wins by the Jets and they will be in prime position to get him. However, it will be interesting to see how the Jaguars play down the stretch. Will they phone it in, or will they play hard for embattled head coach Doug Marrone.
31. New York Giants
Daniel Jones needs to work on his mechanics if the Giants want to start winning football games. Down 25-23, the Giants had a chance to tie the game. If Daniel Jones throws the ball on time to running back Dion Lewis, the Giants force overtime in a game that no one picked them to win. The Giants’ last three losses have been by three, one, and two points, respectively. Their defense is getting better week in and week out. They put up a decent performance against Brady and the Buccaneers on Monday night. They will have their chance to get back into the thick of things in the NFC East, having winnable games at Washington and at home against the Eagles the next two weeks.
32. New York Jets
The Jets could have made a game against the Chiefs but could only muster field goals in the first half. There really is not much else to say about this team. Now, they will be showcased on national television in Week 9 against the New England Patriots. The nation will see if Adam Gase can motivate his players to play a competitive game against a reeling New England squad.
Best Game of Week 8: Los Angeles Chargers @ Denver Broncos
The Chargers end up on the losing side of the best game of the week every other week. This time, they fell victim to a furious comeback by the Denver Broncos. Drew Lock was able to rally the troops from a 24-3 deficit, as the Broncos needed the final play of the game to finish off a 31-30 victory. However, this is the same old story for the Chargers. They have lost games where they had leads of 17 points against Tampa Bay, 17 points against New Orleans, and 21 points against Denver. Justin Herbert has played well, but he has been outdone by his defense. If the Chargers could get past blowing leads, they would be in the conversation for the playoffs right now. They have the talent, but simply have not been able to get the job done. We will see if that changes this week against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Do you agree with our four up and four down rankings? Tweet us, @unafraidshow, with your thoughts.
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