Who wins the NFC West?

[oochymp 2,393]

Sean got this going in the NFC East, but why not get a thread for every division? Player movement is pretty much done and minicamps are getting started, so this seems like a good time to get the discussion going

 

This one feels like a two-team race between Seattle and Arizona, but the Rams are always a tough divisional opponent, and maybe the move to LA gets them fired up, or maybe Chip can re-invigorate San Fransisco or find that Kaepernick is finally the QB who can run his syst- sorry, I can't say that with a straight face, anyway, how do you see this division shaking out?

[Pwillie52 79]

I think the Cardinals take it again. But that is only if Carson Palmer can come out and play solid again this season without getting injured or taking a step back in his old age. Cardinals are the deepest team in the West this year I think. And their WR corps tho....

 

Marshawn retiring will have an impact on the 'hawks I think, even tho he missed half of the season last year. We will see how their RB situation shakes out, but I'm not too sold on them this year. I see them having some struggles again. With the Seahawks tough schedule, Wilson is going to have to keep being a magician, and nothing less, to keep up with the Cards.

 

Rams might get a spark by moving to LA, but I highly highly doubt they are anywhere near competing with the top 2 teams.

Niners are trash.

[RazorStar 4,025]

Jared Goff, god among men, carries the Rams to their first division title since... the Bulger era? Ugh.

 

Actually though it'll be something like this.

49ers 1%

Rams 20%

Seahawks 39.5%

Cardinals 39.5%

[Thanatos 2,847]

I'll take Seattle. I feel like they are the best team in this division. Feel like they were the best team last year even.

[FartWaffles 1,857]

[ATL_Predator+ 1,196]

I think the Cardinals take it again. But that is only if Carson Palmer can come out and play solid again this season without getting injured or taking a step back in his old age. Cardinals are the deepest team in the West this year I think. And their WR corps tho....

 

Marshawn retiring will have an impact on the 'hawks I think, even tho he missed half of the season last year. We will see how their RB situation shakes out, but I'm not too sold on them this year. I see them having some struggles again. With the Seahawks tough schedule, Wilson is going to have to keep being a magician, and nothing less, to keep up with the Cards.

 

Rams might get a spark by moving to LA, but I highly highly doubt they are anywhere near competing with the top 2 teams.

 

Niners are trash.

 

Good to see you back man, don't go

 

But I agree with your entire post..rough for you 49er fans. Lost a lot of guys to retirement and have a down year and then you get Chip Kelly...that's like getting kicked in the balls after some kid already beat you down.

[Cherry 1,302]

Seattle has better talent than Arizona. They should survive to a 12-4 season and I think that will be enough to outlast Cards. Cards are right behind them though and I wouldn't be shocked to see them go 11-5. Rams are #3 but farther back than most people imagine. Losing McLeod and Long really does damage to that defense. The line is still shit on offense. No receivers that do damage. It's basically just the Gurley show on offense again. Maybe 9-7 or 8-8.

[Jayrus 51]

I agree with the idea of another two team race between Seattle and Arizona. The Rams lost major pieces on defense which was the only thing keeping them in the discussion, while the Niners are still struggling to recover from the offseason from hell and Kaepernick's collapse as a QB.

 

Seattle was held back mainly by sup-par o-line play and injuries last year, and even then we only barely missed out on the division title. Rawls was showing himself to be the successor to a aging and breaking down Lynch before he was taken out with an ankle injury. If Rawls comes back healthy and continues where he left off combined with the RB depth we picked up out Run game should be as good or better than it ever was. Especially if the o-line talent we picked up pans out which will not only improve run-blocking for our run game but give Wilson more than 1 second to throw after the snap before he's forced to scramble or take a sack.

 

On the defensive side of the ball we've picked up depth for the D-line and for the 2CB spot which was a bit of a problem last season. This should see our defense continue to be a dominant force. I feel very god about our prospects this season.

 

The Cardinals were already a force. Combined with a strong draft the only thing I could see slowing them down is if Carson Palmer either gets injured regresses for some reason. I don't think the latter is very likely, and the former can't really be predicted. Dethroning Arizona for the division will be an ordeal for any of the three other teams in the West.

 

The Rams have to deal with a city change, a rookie QB, and loss of key defensive players. These things make me feel less than secure about them taking the division, but they're a possible contender and look set up for a bright future (Is it me or does it seem like the Rams get pegged as "possible future contender" every offseason?)

 

The Niners... Well they're a mess. The Offseason From Hell crippled their talent level. Their supposed franchise QB shit the bed, and they now have another new coach to deal with. I do consider Chip a step upward from Tomsula, but only time will tell if he'll fare any better in San Fran than in Philly. The Niners have the pieces to put this thing back together, but they have much to prove to be considered contenders for the division once more. I think this season should tell us much about where they are as a team, and what is needed for them to get back on top again.

Edited May 25, 2016 by Jayrus

[BC 331]

With SEA/AZ being 1a 1b, I feel like the youth/durability will help us edge them out, but will depend on the growth of our O-line (again). Germain Ifedi and J'Marcus Webb appear to be good gets to potentially make this a top total scoring offense. With Lockett taking big leaps forward after sparkling as a rookie, Graham more familiar, and adding Prosise to Rawls for a 1-2 punch of exceptional receiving back abilities, Wilson should achieve PRs if we keep the Aaron Donalds of the league from blowing everything up. I'm sure Arizona will have nearly as good of a record though if they can stay healthy.

 

The Rams could contest this year's winner as early as next year.

 

49ers, see you in '18

[seanbrock 1,684]

Should be Seattle. They clearly suffered a bit of hangover from losing the super bowl the year before and ended up being one of the scariest teams down the stretch. I think this year Seattle is going to settle into their new identity offensively and while I don't see them being as dominant as they have been in the past, they will be very very good.

[Pwillie52 79]

 

Good to see you back man, don't go

 

But I agree with your entire post..rough for you 49er fans. Lost a lot of guys to retirement and have a down year and then you get Chip Kelly...that's like getting kicked in the balls after some kid already beat you down.

Yeah man, I'm gonna try to start getting around the form again. I miss it here. I've checked in every now and then, but rarely post. Maybe get some activity in the graphics section as well again.

 

But yeah, it's been a really rough and frustrating year. Last years terrible offseason and then we followed up with a sub par offseason again this year. Chip Kelly is an upgrade from Tomsula, but I'm not a huge fan of him as an NFL coach. I think he might be able to utilize Kaepernick and maybe get a little production out of him, but I'm not expecting anything too great from the Niners. We amped up our pass rush and added some corner depth, which is good. Our WR corps I think is very sub par. Our OL I think will be bad again this year, even tho we added a couple pieces, making it a nightmare for us to do anything offensively.

 

Gonna be another bad year for 9er fans, but hopefully we will have something to build on by the end of this year instead of going through another 10 year draught of bad coaching and management switch-ups

[seanbrock 1,684]

If Chop can put his ego aside a little and if his power over personnel then he can be a great coach.

[Pwillie52 79]

I agree. One reason we let Harbaugh go is because of power struggles with Baalke and York. Tomsula was a guy that they knew would do whatever they wanted him to do. It will be interesting to see the way that Chip and Baalke get along. If Chip does what he did in Philly with the Niners, I don't see it working out with him. Could see 3 coach changes in 3-4 years...