2019 NFL power rankings, Week 9: Eagles rebound, Panthers humbled

Recap: After snapping a three-game losing streak last week with a resounding win at Atlanta, Sean McVay’s team hit the road for London, England and would face the winless Bengals. And while the defending NFC West champs found themselves tied at halftime, the Rams wound up pitching a shutout in the final two quarters. Jared Goff threw for 372 yards and two scores by completing 17-of-31 passes. And seven of those connections and a whopping 220 yards (1 touchdown) were courtesy of wide receiver Cooper Kupp. Los Angeles’ defense did give up 401 total yards and saw Andy Dalton throw for 329 yards and one score. But they also sacked him five times.

Next Week: McVay’s squad returns to the field in Week 10, the club will travel to Heinz Field for the first time since 2011 to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers. The clubs last met four years ago in St. Louis and the Rams came up short, 12-6. All told, the Rams have dropped three straight games in this interconference series dating back to 2007.

Playoff hopes: The Los Angeles’ offense has started to resemble the attack of 2017 and ’18 the last two weeks, albeit McVay’s club has certainly taken advantage of the poor defenses of the Falcons and Bengals, respectively. In any case, the team has a few weeks to work on some things and there’s certainly time to get back on a roll.

Recap: Last week, the Texans acquired former first-round cornerback Gareon Conley via trade from the Oakland Raiders and just in time for the three-year pro to start against his former team. And Bill O’Brien’s squad had their hands full with this visitor from the Bay Area as Oakland would wind up taking an eight-point lead in the third quarter. But back came the Texans, who outscored the Raiders 14-3 in the game’s final 15 minutes. Deshaun Watson made his share of spectacular plays but the Houston ground attack came up with 130 yards as well. But defensive end J.J. Watt (out for the rest of the season with a torn pectoral muscle) posted the sad news Sunday.

Next Week: The Texans head to London, England, to take on the rival Jacksonville Jaguars and are in position to sweep this AFC South rivalry for the second consecutive season. Back in Week 2 at Houston, O’Brien’s team held off their feisty divisional rivals, 13-12, and have now won the last three games in this always-interesting series.

Playoff hopes: It’s going to be a wild second half in the AFC South, a division where all four teams are .500 or better these days and each came up with a home victory on Sunday. The Texans’ defense will have a little more pressure on it with Watt out for the remainder of the season. Can Watson and the offense carry the load?

Next: Nos. 10 and 9