2013 NFL Division Previews: NFC West
By Loot, NFL Handicapper. Lootmeister.com
Last year the NFC West emerged as one of the toughest divisions in football. A bit top-heavy with San Francisco winning the conference and Seattle having a big season, St. Louis and Arizona were firmly entrenched at the bottom. This season, however, the 49ers and Seahawks should be even better, with the Rams and Cardinals both standing out as some interesting dark-horse teams for the 2013 season. So, how will it all shake out?
San Francisco 49ers: The preseason NFL favorite to win the Super Bowl, San Francisco should have a big season. The preseason expectations are high, especially as they’re led by a quarterback with 7 lifetime regular season starts. Still, there’s no reason to forecast anything but success for Frisco’s versatile young field general. In fact, he now has the supremely-clutch WR Anquan Boldin in the fold and this offense should pack even more of a punch in ’13.
Kaerpernick works behind a fast and big O-line and his legs and added passing options, especially when Crabtree returns, should help keep RB Frank Gore’s legs fresh throughout the season. Defensively, the 49ers are deep. Their front 7 is deadly and even though they lost Dashon Goldson, the secondary figures to be top-notch. With added firepower and a possibility that the replacements in certain areas might even be better than the original guys, San Francisco is going to be hard to beat in the NFC West.
Seattle Seahawks: Last year saw the Seahawks emerge as a real contender coming out of the NFC West. Russell Wilson was one of three rookie quarterbacks to have a huge season, but as the 75th pick out of the 2012 Draft, his rise was highly unexpected. He threw for over 3000 yards and ran for nearly 500, carrying Seattle to an 11-5 record, including wins in their last 5 games and a playoff road win, before coming agonizingly close to beating Atlanta.
This season they add a solid weapon in the passing game with the acquisition of WR Percy Harvin. With Wilson always a threat to run behind a really good offensive line, the addition of Harvin will have opposing defenses even more on their toes this season. Defensively, there was a key loss in CB Marcus Trufant, but they should be able to fill that void and still have a top safety tandem with Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas. The Seahawks are a team worth watching this season.
St. Louis Rams: QB Sam Bradford is now in his 4th season, a time when a guy should really be hitting his stride. In addition, head coach Jeff Fisher is now in his second season. The stars may be lining up for an upturn in the Rams’ fortunes this season. Losing RB Steven Jackson isn’t a positive sign, but replacement Daryl Richardson has shown signs that he can fill in nicely. At the end of the day, it looks like the Rams added more than they lost.
Getting a cornerstone left tackle like Jake Long will be huge. So will the addition of first-round pick WR Tavon Austin, who should give Bradford a great weapon in the passing game. Some young players, like second-year corner Janoris Jenkins, should continue developing. After a constant carrousel of offensive coordinators, Brian Schottenheimer is now in his second season with this crew. Continuity in the coaching staff, the growth of existing players, and some key additions should see the Rams improve on their 7-8-1 mark from last season. Closing 2012 with 4 wins in their last 6 games, the Rams look to be headed in the right direction.
Arizona Cardinals: While no one is predicting the Cardinals will win this division, there are signs that Arizona will not be half-bad. There are many question marks and their most productive coach ever is gone. In addition, they are in perhaps the NFL’s toughest division and are now relying on a quarterback in Carson Palmer who no longer has many people excited. At the same time, Palmer has weapons and he should represent a major boost from the QB carrousel Arizona has been using since losing Kurt Warner to retirement.
RB Rashard Mendenhall should add something to a running game that saw last year’s leading Arizona rusher put up a meager 356 yards. Bruce Arians is now the head coach and did a bang-up job filling in for Chuck Pagano last season with the Colts. He should be up for this gig. If guys like Mendenhall and troubled rookie safety Tyrann Mathieu can deliver, the Cardinals should be better. The O-line will need to step up, but should be in better stead with 7th overall pick G Jonathan Cooper. If receivers Michael Floyd can break out a little bit this year and Andre Roberts can continue improving, they should help Larry Fitzgerald get some better looks. It will be interesting to watch.
