Sunday, August 28, 2011

NFC West: 2011 Outlook

The NFC West was the worst division in all of football last year, and I don't expect 2011 to be any different. The Cardinals appear to be improved on paper, and the Rams should be competitive with a year of experience under QB Sam Bradford's belt. This division will face off against a couple of the deeper divisions in the NFL: the NFC East and the AFC North.

1 - Arizona (8-8)
The Cardinals were atrocious on Offense last year because of their porous QB play. The combination of Derek Anderson, John Skelton, Max Hall, and Richard Bartel produced just 10 Passing TD all year, against 19 combined INT. Wow. By acquiring QB Kevin Kolb and extending WR Larry Fitzgerald's contract, the future looks a little brighter for the Cardinals. I think this team improves, and they battle St. Louis down the stretch for the NFC West title.
2 - St. Louis (8-8)
The Rams had a successful year in 2010; they were a Week 17 win shy of winning the division and heading to the Postseason. Sam Bradford looks the part, and I'm expecting big things from him this year with Josh McDaniels in charge of their Offense. The Defense is better than most give them credit for, and in a weak division, the Rams could make some serious noise. I have both STL and ARI going 8-8; however, it came out that I had the Cardinals sweeping the Rams to win the NFC West.
3 - San Francisco (5-11)
I was a bit surprised that the 49ers were so passive in Free Agency. They let go of CB Nate Clements, and then waited around to replace him with Carlos Rogers. Bringing in Braylon Edwards should prove to be a good move for their not-so-explosive Offense. This team has decent talent; they boast probably the best Linebacker in the league in Patrick Willis. San Fran is good enough to beat anyone in their division, but I think they fall short of being a Playoff contender in 2011.
4 - Seattle (4-12)
How the hell did the Sea-chickens make the Playoffs last year? Outside of a memorable Marshawn Lynch TD last year in the Playoffs, the team didn't make any league-wide noise whatsoever. They tried to bolster their Offense with the additions of WR Sidney Rice (MIN) and TE Zach Miller (OAK), but when they gave Tarvaris Jackson the keys to the Offense, I knew there was no way this team could contend in 2011. Just not a good football team.

No comments:

Post a Comment