A weekly examination of the Lions' ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 24 | Last Week: 11 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

Here comes the Power Rankings slide. The Lions dropped two spots for the second straight week -- this time from No. 11 to No. 13 -- and if not for the hideousness of what is going on in the AFC, the Lions might be a lot further down the list. Simply, Detroit is not playing like a particularly good football team right now. The Lions are turning the ball over and continuing to give up big plays.

And right now, Detroit is playing its way right out of the NFC playoff picture. The Lions are still technically in the playoffs today because of the tiebreaker over Chicago. But the Lions aren't playing like a team that, if they make the playoffs, would have a long stay there. Maybe this is all that needs to be said about the NFC North this season: Despite the struggles, the Lions are still the top-ranked team in the division in this week's Power Rankings.