NFC West Preview

The NFC West is by far the worst division in the NFL. The Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, and St. Louis Rams don't figure to be threats to many teams in the NFL. However, there is upside to this division. The Seahawks had an amazing draft, so there's a chance they can surprise people and capture the division crown. The 49ers already have an assembly of talent on their roster, so it's plausible for them to succeed. The Rams used their #1 overall pick on what they hope to be the future of their franchise in QB Sam Bradford.

The St. Louis Rams drafting of QB Sam Bradford was a step in the right direction. They let go of QB Marc Bulger, who for years has been very overrated. It'll be difficult for Bradford to succeed as a rookie and the talent that's on the Rams roster. He is also coming off of a major shoulder injury, so he could struggle with that in his pro career as well. The schedule isn't difficult for the Rams, but they'll still lose most of their games with a rookie at the helm. They'll finish 3-13, which is an improvement from the 1-15 mark they had last year.

The Seattle Seahawks fired Jim Mora Jr. after one year, and they are now trusting their entire franchise to the hands of Pete Carroll, who was mediocre in his head coaching stints with the New England Patriots and the New York Jets. Carroll was very successful with the USC Trojans, winning two national championships. However, the NFL is different than college, and he has an aging quarterback in QB Matt Hasselbeck, who hasn't proven he has anything left in the tank. They also got rid of QB Seneca Wallace, so Hasselbeck will have to do good. They drafted pretty well, but made a dumb move by cutting WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh recently. They are giving the starting spot to WR Mike Williams, who was a bust in Detroit and Oakland and being real close to not having a career. The Seahawks have not improved and will remain at the 5-11 mark they finished with last year.

The San Francisco 49ers started off last season very well, highlighted with a close loss to the Minnesota Vikings. However, their embarrassing loss to the Atlanta Falcons was the beginning of a season in which they would fall back down to mediocrity. They finished at 8-8, and are now trusting QB Alex Smith to lead the way. With the competition in the division, combined with the talent on the roster, the 49ers should easily win the division. However, they won't be threats in the playoffs. They'll finish with a 9-7 mark and a division crown.

The Arizona Cardinals are two years removed from a Super Bowl appearance, but a lot has changed since. QB Kurt Warner, who led them to the Super Bowl and a NFC Divisional Round appearance last year, retired, leaving the position to QB Matt Leinart. Coach Ken Whisenhunt didn't see anything in Leinart and quickly lost faith in him, handing the job to QB Derek Anderson, who only had one solid season as a starter. Leinart was cut, and now the explosive offense, with WR Larry Fitzgerald, WR Steve Breaston, and WR Early Doucett, is now in the hands of Anderson. That will be a fail, as the Cardinals will fall to 7-9 and search for another quarterback next offseason.