The NFL plot thickens as a new number one emerges and teams with high expectations fall hard.

Only eight out of 17 games in week eight finished within one score, which furthers the narrative of teams establishing their ground.

Just under halfway through the season teams are dominating, competing, scraping or laying down.

Who’s hot and who’s not? Lets dive into a, very brief recap, of each teams week eight performance, but let’s also have some fun while doing it.

  Philadelphia Eagles (7-0)

Week eight result: Win, 35-13 over Pittsburgh.

The Eagles dismantled Pittsburgh without hesitation. Their dominant win and perfect record bump them up to number one for the first time this season. This team is on top of the NFL in almost way.

  Buffalo Bills (6-1)

Week eight result: Win, 27-17 over Green Bay.

Buffalo’s defense helped immensely against the Packers. Josh Allen showed a weakness in his armor throwing two picks, but they still got the job done. They drop one spot heading into week nine.

Side note: If this was an “NFL social media team power ranking,” they’d be number one.

  Kansas City Chiefs (5-2)

Week eight result: Bye.

They did not play last week, but despite losing weapons on offense, Patrick Mahomes looks like superman, yet again. They stay put heading into this week.

  Minnesota Vikings (6-1)

Week eight result: Win, 34-26 over Arizona.

While many doubt the capabilities of Kirk Cousins, the Vikings keep winning games. With the recent addition of former Detroit Lions tight end, T.J. Hockenson, this offense instantly elevated. They stay at four for now, but could easily move up with a week nine win.

  Dallas Cowboys (6-2)

Week eight result: Win, 49-29 over Chicago.

Whenever a team can score nearly two touchdowns in every quarter, they’re going to move up. Granted it was against the Bears, but Chicago’s defense has been decent this season.

  Baltimore Ravens (5-3)

Week eight result: Win, 27-22 over Tampa Bay.

The Ravens have a winning streak goin now and who knows how long it can go. They outplayed Tom Brady last week as the rest of Tampa Bay’s team was a no-show.

  New York Giants (6-2)

Week eight result: Loss, 13-27 against Seattle.

After four straight victories the Giants finally caved, last week, into the team most expected to see  all year. It doesn’t mean they’re finished, but the team feeds off momentum and a bad loss won’t help their case.

  Cincinnati Bengals (4-4)

Week eight result: Loss, 32-13 against Cleveland.

Like college football, in-state rivalries are prone to unexpected results. The Bengals fell to the Browns in a bad loss on Monday Night Football. Ja’Marr Chase is out and this team will have to adjust if they want another playoff birth.

  Los Angeles Chargers (4-3)

Week eight result: Bye.

No game last week for the Chargers, but the weapons they have on offense are too dangerous to ignore. The loss of Mike Williams will hurt this team, but only time can tell, until he returns.

  San Francisco 49ers (4-4)

Week eight result: Win, 31-14 over Los Angeles (R).

Talk about, instant impact, Christain McCaffrey (in his first week) ran for a touchdown, threw a touchdown and caught a touchdown. When Deebo Samuel returns, this team will be a force to reckon with.

  Miami Dolphins (5-3)

Week eight result: Win, 31-27 over Detroit.

Theres no stopping the duo of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. They both had over 100 receiving yards each and tore apart a bad Lions secondary. They only move up one spot due to the fact that the Dolphins only won by four against a Detroit defense could be mistaken for a USFL or XFL squad.

  Tennessee Titans (5-2)

Week eight result: Win, 17-10 over Houston.

While this team is acquiring wins, the offense foley relies on Derrick Henry. He rushed for over 200 yards and had both Titans touchdowns. 12 is a high rank, but as long as the defense and Henry hold up, they’ll continue to win.

  New York Jets (5-3)

Week eight result: Loss, 17-22 against New England.

It’s obvious that the Jets want to groom a young Zach Wilson into their franchise star, but it’s not working out so well. In the wins they got when he was on the field, he still wasn’t great. If New York has playoff aspirations, they might want to give Joe Flacco another shot as the starter.

  Seattle Seahawks (5-3)

Week eight result: Win, 29-13 over New York (G).

Seattle gets their third straight, win as their team and franchise have quickly grabbed the attention of the football world. With the momentum they have they should be higher, but because of how young and unexpected their team is, they halt at 14 (underneath a team with a very similar path thus far).

  New England Patriots (4-4)

Week eight result: Win, 22-17 over New York (J).

While there was some controversy at the quarterback position, this team was able to push through and get a win against a tough, young and hungry Jets squad. The Patriots defense continued to play well. Ultimately it’s up to the offense to win and that’s not as solid as their back half.

  New Orleans Saints (3-5)

Week eight result: Win, 24-0 over Las Vegas.

Anytime a team can get a shutout, it’ll greatly improve their ranking. Unfortunately this team is prone to inconsistency. If Alvin Kamara can stay healthy this team can be very scary.

  Atlanta Falcons (4-4)

Week eight result: 37-34 over Carolina.

Younghoo Koo came in the clutch for the second time this season, securing the victory in overtime. This team is an NFL anomaly (at 4-4) but one thing is obvious, they fight and scrape for every yard.

  Arizona Cardinals (3-5)

Week eight result: Loss, 26-34 against Minnesota.

After dropping 42 points, two weeks ago, the Cardinals couldn’t quite tackle Minnesota last week. DeAndre Hopkins is back and playing well, but it’s not enough to push them over the top.

  Los Angeles Rams (3-4)

Week eight result: Loss, 14-31 against San Francisco.

It might be time to officially wave the white flag for last years NFL Super Bowl champs. The 49ers are a tough team, but if the Rams want the same results they have to beat better opponents. They drop down to 19 above two other teams that find themselves in similar predicaments.

  Green Bay Packers (3-5)

Week eight result: Loss, 17-27 against Buffalo.

Aaron Rodgers cannot seem to find a consistent target to throw to. Thankfully their run game decided to show up this week, but it wasn’t enough. Green Bay tacks on their fourth-straight loss.

  Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)

Week eight result: Loss, 22-27 against Baltimore.

Brady did his best to get his team the win. In the NFL the rush is important, when it’s non-existent it’s hard to win. Tampa dropped their third game in a row and are ranked the lowest they’ve been all season.

  Cleveland Browns (3-5)

Week eight result: Win, 32-13 over Cincinnati.

The Browns have lost a lot of close games this season. With a commanding victory over the Bengals, Monday’s matchup could be the turning point for Clevelands season.

  Las Vegas Raiders (2-5)

Week eight result: Loss, 0-24 against New Orleans.

This team is very reminiscent of the 2012-13 Los Angeles Lakers, who had Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Steve Nash, etc. The talent on the team was mind-boggling but they vastly underperformed. The same can be said for this years Raiders.

  Washington Commanders (4-4)

Week eight result: Win, 17-16 over Indianapolis.

Unfortunately for Carson Wentz, the Commanders are 2-0 with Taylor Heincke at the helm. They’re ranked low as of now despite having a .500 record, but things could change. This offense seems to be much more responsive to Heincke leading the team.

  Denver Broncos (3-5)

Week eight result: Win, 21-17 over Jacksonville.

They had to travel all the way to London to do it, but Denver snapped a four game skid. It’s well documented about the disappointment this team has been, but after trading Bradley Chubb, things might not improve much more in the “Mile-High City.”

  Indianapolis Colts (3-4-1)

Week eight result: Loss, 16-17 against Washington.

Sam Ehlinger got his first career start against the Commanders last week. It didn’t go bad, he just was not responsible for any scores. If the Colts want to compete with Tennessee for the AFC South, they’ll need to produce much more than 16 points.

  Jacksonville Jaguars (2-6)

Week eight result: Loss, 17-21 against Denver.

Trevor Lawrence did not look good in London at all. These NFL out-of-country games are hard to judge, but a five-game losing streak is not. The Jaguars drop five spots after another tough loss.

  Chicago Bears (3-5)

Week eight result: Loss, 29-49 against Dallas.

While they were blown out by a much better team last week, the bears showed improvement on offense scoring 29 points. Fields looks like he’s getting more comfortable as the season progresses. Chicago sticks at 28 because they played well enough to remain stagnant.

  Carolina Panthers (2-6)

Week eight result: Loss, 34-37 against Atlanta.

For the “lack” of talent expected on an NFL roster, this team refuses to give up. P.J. Walker has, so far, outplayed both of the quarterbacks in-front of him on the depth chart. They move up one spot because, unlike the teams below, they refuse to lay down and take the loss without a fight.

  Pittsburgh Steelers (2-6)

Week eight result: Loss, 13-35 against Philadelphia.

The Steelers showed life in week seven, but fell back to earth against the Eagles. This team is in the midst of finding an identity, especially, trading away some young talent at the NFL deadline earlier this week.

  Detroit Lions (1-6)

Week eight result: Loss, 27-31 against Miami.

The Lions haven’t scored in the second half in three straight games. This team finds ways to shoot themselves in the foot. The offense is there but the defense is nonexistent (outside of two or three individuals).

  Houston Texans (1-5-1)

Week eight result: Loss, 10-17 against Tennessee.

All Houston had to do was stop one man and they could have a chance to win. Unfortunately they could not stop Derrick Henry. It’s hard to win an NFL game with only 10 points.

Photo Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports (Hurts) Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports (Adams) Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports (Stafford).