NFL Preview: NFC West

1. San Francisco 49ers

This is by far the easiest division winner to predict. Not only is this team extremely good, they also play in the worst division in the NFC. Alex Smith won’t throw for a lot of yards or touchdowns, but he is a good game manager and doesn’t make many mistakes. Frank Gore is breaking down, but Kendall Hunter, Brandon Jacobs, and LaMichael James will give him some help at running back. The receiving corps is full of big names, like Michael Crabtree, Randy Moss, and Mario Manningham, but they are nothing more than average and won’t put up big numbers with Smith throwing them the ball. The best part of the offense is the line, which includes the dominant left side of Joe Staley and Mike Iupati. The real story of this 49ers team is the defense though. Literally every starter is a Pro Bowl caliber player. Patrick Willis is a future Hall of Famer, Justin Smith probably should have won Defensive Player of the Year last season, and Aldon Smith and Navarro Bowman are stars in the making. The 49ers were two fumbled punt returns away from representing the NFC in the Super Bowl last year. Even with an average offense, the defense is good enough to take the 49ers back to the playoffs.

Projected Record: 12-4

2. Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks have improved every year under Pete Carroll, and this year should be no different. They shocked everyone by naming rookie Russell Wilson the starting quarterback after giving Matt Flynn a big contract. Wilson is a freak athlete and looked like a veteran in the preseason, but there will definitely be some growing pains and rookie struggles. It helps though that Wilson has Marshawn Lynch to hand the ball off to. Lynch looked like his old self last season and should stay in “Beast Mode” this year too. The receivers aren’t very good, but it wouldn’t be surprising if either Golden Tate or Doug Baldwin broke out this season. Like the 49ers, the real strength of this team is the defense. The front 7 is pretty good and will put a lot of pressure on opposing quarterbacks. However, it’s the secondary that makes this defense great. The unit of Brandon Browner, Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor, and Richard Sherman is young, fast, and hard-hitting. They might be the best secondary in the NFL and will be nightmares for quarterbacks this season. I do think Seattle will be good, but they are another team that will get screwed because they play in the NFC.

Projected Record: 9-7

3. St. Louis Rams

The Rams were absolutely pitiful last season, but that shouldn’t be the case this year. I’m not saying they’re going to be good, but new head coach Jeff Fisher won’t let them suck as much as they did. After an awesome rookie season, Sam Bradford had a very disappointing year, and now has to prove this season that he was worthy of being drafted first overall. Steven Jackson has been more the solid at running back for the Rams, but the end is near for him so he might start to slow down this season. The receivers are mediocre, as is the offensive line. Like the previous two teams in this division, their defense is better than their offense. Chris Long has silently turned into a stud, and Robert Quinn is also good on the opposite end of the line. James Laurinaitis is a great middle linebacker and makes that unit respectable. Cortland Finnegan was brought in to solidify the secondary, and if rookie Janoris Jenkins plays up to his full potential then this group could be very good. The Rams have no shot of making the playoffs this season, but they’ll improve and will at least be watchable.

Projected Record: 6-10

4. Arizona Cardinals

Yikes. It’s pretty hard to believe that only a few years ago this team played in the Super Bowl. If you look up and down their roster, you’ll realize that this is a REALLY bad team. It all starts with the quarterback, and that would be John Skelton, who should not be starting for any NFL team. They have one of the best players in the NFL in Larry Fitzgerald, but this season might even be a down year for him if he doesn’t have a decent quarterback. On top of this, the offensive line is an absolute joke. The defense is better than the offense, but it’s still not great. The Cardinals have two great ends in Darnell Dockett and Calais Campbell. Adrian Wilson is still one of the best safeties in the game, and Patrick Peterson is a game changer at both the cornerback and punt returner positions. The others starters aside from them are either subpar or average. Add all of this up, and this is going to be a disastrous season for the Cardinals.

Projected Record: 4-12

-PJ Moran