At the end of Week 8, the Texans find themselves with the best record in franchise history after a third consecutive win. The average ranking for the Texans rose from 17 last week to 14 after the win against the Bills. Additionally, SB Nation is now polling the writers of each blog to create their own Power Rankings, which I have for you after the jump.
ESPN: 14
The upcoming trip to Indianapolis is only the most significant game in franchise history.
Fox Sports: 18
Houston fans are itching to dive into the deep end of the Texans pool. At 5-3 with an exciting offense, this year's team represents the bet team in Houston since Warren Moon was QB-ing the Oilers.
CBS Sports: 13
The improvement of the defense to go with the passing game has really helped this team. They do have a lot of premium talent on the defensive side of the ball.
Yahoo Sports: 15
Can we commend Ryan Moats for being a lot more aggressive toward opposing tacklers than he is toward overzealous law-enforcement officers?
Who had Ryan Moats in their fantasy lineup Sunday?
Maybe Steve Slaton can move to tight end.
NFL Experts Average Ranking: 13
My Rankings:
1. New Orleans Saints - Dominant on both sides of the ball and they find a way to win.
2. Indianapolis Colts - This team will always be good with Peyton Manning at the helm.
3. Minnesota Vikings - Brett Favre should be fourth on the team MVP vote.
4. Pittsburgh Steelers - Handed away a couple of games early but have found their stride.
5. Denver Broncos - This team is very tough, but their schedule might be tougher.
6. New England Patriots - Tom Brady has very quietly returned to form.
7. Cincinnati Bengals - The ground attack and the defense has a nasty attitude.
8. Philadelphia Eagles - Could be the best in the NFC East this year.
9. Dallas Cowboys - Beat Atlanta and Seattle, but what about division opponents?
10. Baltimore Ravens - Finally won a tough game they could have.
11. Green Bay Packers - A better offensive line makes this the best NFC North team.
12. Atlanta Falcons - On the wrong end of the most entertaining MNF game all year.
13. Houston Texans - The defense is playing well, and they'll have to against Indianapolis.
14. Arizona Cardinals - They did beat the Texans and New York, but they are so inconsistent.
15. New York Giants - Three weeks ago they were considered the best team in football.
16. San Diego Chargers - The classic underachieving team.
17. San Francisco 49ers - They might be 3-4, but this team is better than their record, specifically the defense.
18. Miami Dolphins - Have now beat trash talking Rex Ryan twice.
19. New York Jets - The combination of losing Kris Jenkins and starting a rookie QB might be too much.
20. Chicago Bears - Sure they beat Cleveland, but it wasn't very impressive.
21. Carolina Panthers- Best thing Jake Delhomme did all season was hand the ball off 41 times.
22. Jacksonville Jaguars - How can you not give MJD the ball until halfway through the second quarter?
23. Seattle Seahawks - They may not admit it, but this team is in rebuilding mode.
24. Buffalo Bills - You just can't win giving up 174 yards per game.
25. Oakland Raiders - This team would be so much better with any other quarter back.
26. Washington Redskins - This once proud franchise has turned into a circus led by Dan Snyder.
27. Tennessee Titans - Good to make your first start the same week that Chris Johnson goes for 228 yards.
28. Kansas City Chiefs - They need an offensive line in the worst kind of way.
29. St. Louis Rams - Snap a 17 game losing streak is easy when you play Detroit.
30. Detroit Lions - Fans heckling their franchise rookie quarter back is pretty bush league.
31. Cleveland Browns - Eric Mangini is the worst coach in the league.
32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Looking at their schedule, they might not win a game all year.