Wednesday, July 16
This is my fourth of an eight-part early prediction look at the NFL divisions. Today: NFC West. First a bit of trivia. The top three teams versus the spread all came from this division. Seattle, San Francisco and Arizona all tied for the best spread mark last year at 11-5.
1. Seahawks: A lot broke right for the Seahawks, including being No. 1 in turnover ratio. They lost some defensive line and secondary depth, but hard to pick against them especially factoring a 17-1 record in their last 18 home games.
2. 49ers: The offense should be better with upgraded wide receiving and Colin Kaepernick gaining more experience. The defense, though, is slipping from dominant to good minus NaVorro Bowman, the departure of several defensive backs and a likely suspension of pass rushing terror Aldon Smith.
3. Cardinals: Bruce Arians improved Arizona five games last season. Arians has turned the Cardinals into a solid team, but they are in the wrong division, Carson Palmer is past his prime, a ground game has yet to emerge and the defense suffered a hit with the season-long suspension of linebacker Daryl Washington.
4. Rams: Jeff Fisher has steered the Rams from a laughingstock into a .500 club giving them a nasty edge and building an elite defensive line. Sam Bradford actually was looking good until he went out for the season with a knee injury. This is a make-or-break season for him. The Rams still are at least a year away from playoff contention lacking elite weapons and being vulnerable in the secondary.