Power Rankings: Colts the only choice

Updated Nov. 1

This is what we love about the NFL: The team ranked second in last week's CBS SportsLine.com Power Rankings lost to No. 31.

Doesn't that sum up the state of the NFL?

A trip to Foxborough is up next for Tony Dungy. (Getty Images)

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were coming off a bye week and had lost just once before Sunday. San Francisco was whipped 52-17 the week before by the Washington Redskins, had a backup quarterback starting, and ended the game with a player who was their fourth-team quarterback three weeks ago taking the final snaps.

And they still beat the Bucs.

So that got me to thinking -- do we really know who the good teams are anymore?

The Colts are the only obvious choice. Sure, Denver has had its moments and the New York Giants are hot and Seattle can score, and the Steelers play a mean brand of defense -- but even they struggled against the crippled Ravens at home.

So are any of those teams elite? We still have no idea.

It's November, a time when the picture usually starts to clear, yet aside from the Colts, we don't know about any of the teams in the top 10 of our Power Rankings.

The Colts doubters will say we still don't know about them, either. We won't until early next Tuesday morning, when the final seconds tick off in their Monday night game against the New England Patriots.

When you've played personal punching bag to a team for the past couple of years, it's hard to believe in the Colts until they show they can beat the Patriots.

As the lone remaining unbeaten team, the Colts have a firm grasp on the top spot of the rankings, but what if they lose next Monday? Then what?

Nobody really knows ... but, when Brett Favre is quarterbacking the bottom team in the league, it really is a strange season.

The rankings after Week 8:

RANK	TEAM		MOVE (LW)