NFL Power Rankings Week 8: Lions rise up the rankings continues

Don’t look now, but the Detroit Lions have won three of their last four games and pulled to .500 on the season entering Week 8.

They needed some help to get an opportunity at the end of the game, but when Matthew Stafford gets the ball, down six, with a 1:04 left on the clock, Lions fans know good things can happen. Indeed, Stafford produced another clutch performance leading the Lions to a 23-22 victory over the Falcons.

Let’s take a closer look at what the national analysts thought of the Lions’ victory and what the experts are saying this week.

Touchdown Wire: 22 (Previous: 26)

“The Lions are a tough team to figure out, but if you look at the trendlines right now, things are moving in the right direction. After some tough losses to start the season the Lions have won three of their last four and face some winnable games coming up, including matchups with Washington, Minnesota and Carolina. Perhaps it is time to move Matt Patricia off the hot seat for a few weeks.” — Mark Schofield

USA Today: 18 (Previous 17)

“Rookie RB D’Andre Swift has four TDs over past three games. Just imagine if Detroit kept him on field more than 50% of the snaps just once.” — Nate Davis

NFL: 21 (Previous: 22)

“What a relief it must have been for the Lions to be on the winning end of a dramatic finish for once. Todd Gurley’s inability to stop his momentum gave the Lions life, and Matthew Stafford potentially saved Detroit’s season with a 75-yard touchdown drive that spanned 64 seconds. That the Lions did it without the aid of a timeout made their comeback all the more unlikely. Stafford’s winning touchdown pass was completed to T.J. Hockenson, who now has three scores in his last three games and is starting to tap into the promise that made him a first-round pick a year ago. The Lions get the Colts at home before the schedule lightens up. This is their chance to make a move.” — Dan Hanzus

ESPN: 22 (Previous: 23)

“Who needs to step up: RB Adrian Peterson. While the Lions are seeing better play from rookie D’Andre Swift, they need to get more from Peterson. The future Hall of Famer’s numbers might not look too bad, but his production is trending down. He has gone from 6.64 yards per carry in Week 1 to 2.64 yards per carry in Week 7. If Detroit is going to give Peterson 10 or 11 carries a contest instead of, say, going to Kerryon Johnson or using Swift more, Peterson needs to be doing more with those opportunities. It’s not all his fault: The playcalling hasn’t always been advantageous to him, often resulting in runs in fairly predictable situations. Some playcall diversification from offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell might help.” — Michael Rothstein

CBS Sports: 16 (Previous 23)

“At 3-3, they have righted their season. The defense has made strides the past two weeks, which is key to their turnaround. Now they face a good Indianapolis team that will tell a better story of where they are as a team.” — Pete Prisco

Sports Illustrated: 20 (Previous: 24)

“At 3–3, Detroit is on pace to be confounding for another 10 weeks. Matt Stafford seems to be turning the corner, and the Lions have a very weak portion of their schedule coming up with games against Minnesota and Washington looming in the not so distant future.” — Connor Orr

Sporting News: 18 (Previous: 22)

“The Lions are doing their best to play better for Matt Patricia. They’ve hit the right note in their offense with Matthew Stafford and D’Andre Swift — just in time for a comeback win back in Georgia. The defense is showing signs of responding, too, for two straight weeks.” — Vinnie Iyer