It was to be expected. Getting trounced 38-6 in Baltimore was bound to drop the Detroit Lions in NFL power polls after Week 7.
Sure enough, the Lions did fall out of the top five with the loss. However, the fall wasn’t very far for Detroit in most polls. The 5-2 Lions remain firmly in the NFL’s top 10, as they should.
The commentary from Touchdown Wire’s Jarrett Bailey sums it up nicely,
Huh. Well alrighty then.
That was a burn the tape game for the Lions. They were dominant throughout the first month and a half- it was only a matter of time before they came down to Earth and got smacked in the mouth. Every team, no matter how good, has one of those games. They play the Raiders on Monday night- I fully expect them to win.
Bailey dropped the Lions from fifth to No. 8. It was a similar story at USA TODAY, where Detroit fell from No. 3 to No. 6 after the loss.
The Athletic also slotted Detroit in the No. 6 slot. The fall at ESPN was a little steeper. Detroit dropped from 4th to 9th.
As for our rankings at Lions Wire? I only update them every four weeks to avoid being too reactionary. I still can’t name five teams that are definitively better than these Lions, however, not after the performances by the 49ers, Bills and Seahawks in Week 7.
Oh by the way, the Kansas City Chiefs are either first or second in every poll. The Lions beat them in Kansas City in Week 1–the Chiefs only loss.