'Disjointed Offense' Causes Lions to Dip in NFL Power Rankings

Here is a look at Week 10 NFL power rankings.

Following a surprising loss to the Vikings, the Detroit Lions are still viewed as a top team, but now have some pretty important questions to answer regarding if their offensive line can rebound after a really bad performance against a division rival.

Sports Illustrated

Power ranking: 6th
Last ranking: 6th

In our trade deadline primer, we had the Lions calling New Orleans for offensive line help. After watching the left side of that unit get caved in against Minnesota on Sunday, eventually forcing the Lions to alter their game plan because of the ineffectiveness of their RB pass protections, that seems like an inevitability.

ESPN

Power ranking: 6th
Last ranking: 2nd

The Lions will get tested by an elite squad in a showdown with the reigning Super Bowl champions on "Sunday Night Football." They will need to bring their A-game to win in Philadelphia, and it'll serve as a good barometer for where the Lions stand among the league's elite teams after already losing to Green Bay and Kansas City on the road. Detroit is looking to secure its third straight NFC North crown.

The Athletic

Power ranking: 7th
Last ranking: 2nd

Their running game was stuck in the mud Sunday against Brian Flores’ Vikings defense, but this is still a really good football team. There won’t be many more opponents who can bottle up Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery the way Minnesota did.

CBS Sports

Power ranking: 11th
Last ranking: 4th

Losing at home to the Vikings is not a good look for this team. The offense looked disjointed in that game, and now they have two on the road.

The Ringer

Power ranking: 6th
Last ranking: 2nd

If you’re a Jared Goff skeptic, Detroit’s loss on Sunday had to feel like a gift. He was rattled by pressure from the Vikings defense, and his lack of athleticism kept him from escaping the pocket. The result was that this Detroit offense couldn’t access the explosive passes that typically make it unstoppable.

Detroit’s interior offensive line had a worse performance than its quarterback, but if the Lions are supposed to be real contenders, you have to ask Goff to rise above those circumstances and play winning football. If this Vikings defense can do this to Detroit, what’s stopping the rest of the NFC’s contenders from disrupting Goff’s rhythm?

Sporting News

Power ranking: 13th
Last ranking: 6th

The Lions need to figure out what's going on with their defensive issues against other dangerous offenses. Also, if teams have been able to shut down the Lions' running game they can pretty much shut down anything else from them.

USA Today

Power ranking: 9th
Last ranking: 5th

After stumbling out of their bye, maybe they'll find a trip through the entire NFC East over the next five weeks will be a welcome respite from the unforgiving NFC North.

Bleacher Report

Power ranking: 9th
Last ranking: 6th

Some concerns should be bubbling to the surface since the Lions' offensive line, which was previously viewed as elite, has not played well in recent weeks.

In fact, Detroit's last two opponents sacked Jared Goff nine times. Minnesota sacked him five times, while adding 11 quarterback hits.

Goff is a distributor, not a playmaker. He's going to run the offensive scheme at peak efficiency if he's kept clean. He's not going to generate plays outside of structure or against significant pressure.

His skill set and its deficiencies were obvious against the rival Vikings.

Yahoo! Sports

Power ranking: 7th
Last ranking: 2nd

It’s easier said than done, but if you can take out the Lions’ running game, they’re a different team. The Packers shut down Detroit’s run game in Week 1 and Minnesota did it Sunday. Those are the two worst games the Lions have played this season. It won’t happen often, though.

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