NFC West 
Arizona Cardinals – For the past three years,
I have gone out of my way to predict the Cardinals will finally turn
it around this season. And they keep making me a liar. Well, never again,
boys! You’ve fooled your last prognosticator! There’s no
way I’m falling into that same trap.
The Cardinals should win their division this year on the strength of
their offense alone. QB Kurt Warner showed last season that he’s
still got some life in that throwing arm, and he won a legitimate camp
battle for the starting job in ‘08. In November and December alone,
he threw 21 touchdowns. Not too shabby for an old man. He is greatly
advantaged by having wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin
at his beck and call. Gone is the often-used #3 WR Bryant Johnson. Longshot
Steve Breaston appears to have secured Johnson’s old job, although
I expect he won’t be called on nearly as often. RB Edgerrin James
is probably entering his last year as a starter – just as his
offensive line is improving. Despite the loss of center Al Johnson,
this O-line could still become one of the ten best under the continued
guidance of coach Russ Grimm. That should benefit rookie RB Tim Hightower
on short yardage plays. Drafted out of the University of Richmond, Hightower
has the power that Edge seems to have lost.
The Cardinals lost a big part of their defense when DE/LB Calvin Pace
departed via free agency. Pace was finally showing why the team selected
him in the first round, and now he’s gone. To rush the passer,
Arizona acquired Travis LaBoy from the Tennessee Titans. DT Darnell
Dockett turned in a fantastic season, and he seems geared to improve
on his ’07 play. The team also resigned star-in-the-making linebacker
Karlos Dansby. Last year’s starting cornerback Antrel Rolle was
moved to free safety early in the off-season. That made room for first-round
draft pick Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. He’ll take a year or two
of grooming in a nickel role, but eventually, the Cardinals hope to
turn him loose the way his cousin, Antonio Cromartie, got turned loose
in San Diego. Rod Hood and Eric Green remain a strong starting tandem.
And the Cardinals expect to get a healthy S Adrian Wilson back for Week
1. Wilson may be the best safety in the NFC, so his return is imperative
to Arizona’s success this year.
Why do I do it? Why do I continue to support a team that has made me
look foolish year in and year out? Because I’m pretty sure the
guy who kept predicting the Bucs would turn it around one day felt pretty
damn good when they won it all.
Strength: quarterback
Weakness: running back
2008 MVP’s: Larry Fitzgerald & Adrian Wilson
Unsung hero: Matt Leinart
Record last year: 8-8
Record this year: 8-8 (playoffs)
St. Louis Rams – Few teams can make the claim
that injuries cost them their season as accurately as the Rams can.
Practically the entire starting offensive line ended up on injured reserve.
Running backs, quarterbacks, linebackers… when you’ve got
53 players on the injury list, you know you’re in deep trouble
in a league that only allows you to carry 53 players. The big question
for the team is: How good could you have been if only you’d been
healthy?
Most of the offense will run through RB Steven Jackson, who took his
sweet time showing up at camp. In an ill-fated attempt to force the
Rams to offer him a crippling new contract, Jackson made an ass of himself
and possibly cost his team a few early-season losses. Players who sit
out for extended periods often end up with serious injuries. Time will
tell on that one. The Rams discovered they don’t have dick at
running back without Jackson. Brian Leonard and Antonio Pittman are
terrible options if the need arises. Longtime Rams WR Isaac Bruce was
cut early in the off-season to make room for… well, nobody. There
is no way the Rams think that Drew Bennett and rookie WR Donnie Avery
are improvements there. The #2 receiving option behind Torry Holt may
end up being TE Randy McMichael. New offensive coordinator Al Saunders
has a knack for getting the ball to his tight ends (Tony Gonzalez with
the Chiefs and Chris Cooley with the Redskins, most recently). And then
there’s that battered, battered line. Orlando Pace is probably
entering his last season in the NFL, and he’s back to anchor the
line, with the former Titan Jacob Bell lining up next to him at guard.
The interior is bolstered by Nick Leckey and Richie Incognito (the King
of IR). Now that Alex Barron is back at his more natural position of
right tackle, the Rams could actually turn this line around 180 degrees.
On the defensive line, the Rams welcome a future star at defensive
end: Chris Long. This guy simply cannot fail. 10 sacks is a conservative
estimate for his rookie season, with 11-year veteran Leonard Little
still causing a commotion on the other side. In the middle, sophomore
Adam Carricker is coming off a great rookie campaign, and La’Roi
Glover is still stout after 13 years. This is definitely a changing
of the guard along the line: Glover and Little don’t have much
time left. MLB Will Witherspoon showed he’s a keeper after two
strong seasons in the middle. Curiously, the team is going with Quinton
Culberson at OLB, undrafted out of Mississippi State last year. It’s
unclear if this is due to a lack of talent at the position… or
simple economics… or maybe he’s just that good? The Rams
have one defensive back worth praising: interception-master O.J. Atogwe
at safety. And even HE isn’t well-loved in St. Louis for his frequent
missed tackles due to playing out of position.
A lot of things need to come together for the Rams to make a dent in
this division. There just doesn’t seem to be enough top-to-bottom
talent to get it done, even if they do enjoy a healthier season than
2007.
Strength: defensive line
Weakness: cornerbacks
2008 MVP’s: Steven Jackson & Chris Long
Unsung hero: Ricky Manning, Jr.
Record last year: 3-13
Record this year: 4-12
San Francisco 49’ers – Niner Nation got
a nice little gift when they learned that Mike Martz would become their
new offensive coordinator. Finally! Someone who can work with Alex Smith
and turn him into the quarterback he was always supposed to be! Uh…
maybe not.
QB J.T. O’Sullivan enters the season as the #1 signal-caller.
Completely written off as a camp arm in May, O’Sullivan slowly
but surely wedged his way into the quarterback duel, and he came out
on top. Alex Smith appears to be starting the season not only dejected
and benched… he also seems to be quite injured. What a strange,
strange career it’s been for poor Alex so far. The offense will
run through RB Frank Gore – as long as he can protect his knees,
of course. He’s a candidate for 2000 all-purpose yards as long
as he stays healthy. At wide receiver, there’s a big jumbled mess.
Bryant Johnson comes over from the Cardinals, and he seems to have “earned”
a starting spot without catching a single pass in the pre-season. Martz’s
old reliable Isaac Bruce will start as well, with Arnaz Battle taking
the same spot that gave Shaun McDonald his 79-reception year in Martz’s
Detroit offense. Rookie WR Josh Morgan will be rotated in as well. The
one wrinkle we will probably see in Martz’s offense is a focus
on the tight end – never a big part of Martz’s game plan
in the past. Both Vernon Davis and Delanie Walker have caught Martz’s
eye, and I’m sure he’s already concocted quite a few big
plays to get them open.
ILB extraordinaire Patrick Willis lived up to my expectations and then
some, leading the NFL in tackles (and #2 wasn’t even close). DE
Justin Smith comes over from the Bengals, where he wasn’t used
nearly as effectively as he’ll be used in San Fran. Two other
players with Bengals cred join the team this year too: LB’s Takeo
Spikes and Ahmad Brooks. The Niners are incredibly deep at defensive
back. Corners Walt Harris, Nate Clements and Shawntae Spencer make a
great rotation. And safeties Michael Lewis, Mark Roman and Dashon Goldson
are also fabulous options to have back there. How this team ended up
with the 25th ranked D, I’ll never know. There are certainly great
players here – now, they need to become a great team.
If Martz can turn the offense around behind O’Sullivan…
and if the defense can finally play as a unit… there’s no
reason the Niners can’t enjoy the sort of season they THOUGHT
they were going to have in ’07. I think, after a poor 2008 draft,
they might be a year away though.
Strength: defensive backs
Weakness: offensive line
2008 MVP’s: Frank Gore & Patrick Willis
Unsung hero: Shawntae Spencer
Record last year: 5-11
Record this year: 7-9
Seattle Seahawks – Winners of the NFC West the
last four seasons in a row, the Seattle Seahawks are entering 2008 with
a horrible task ahead of them. They find themselves with injuries to
3 of their 4 best wide receivers and a suspended safety. A team that
gave up their star running back after his legs and willpower disappeared
will now have to re-embrace the run.
RBs Julius Jones, T.J. Duckett and rookie Justin Forsett were added
to make up for the loss of Shaun Alexander. Incumbent Maurice Morris
will start the season though. This group will have to carry the load
while the team waits for WRs Deion Branch and Bobby Engram to recover
(WR Ben Obomanu was placed on injured reserve, so his big plans are
dashed). QB Matt Hasselbeck had a career season in 2007, and now he’s
unlikely to come close to approaching those numbers. Nate Burleson is
the only healthy wide-out with double-digit NFL receptions. Sure, the
Seahawks receivers will get healthy eventually, but by then, will the
team have fallen far behind in the playoff hunt? As we’ve seen,
the offensive line just hasn’t been the same since guard Steve
Hutchinson left for Minnesota (and thus, made THEM one of the NFL’s
best). LT Walter Jones enters his 12th NFL season. He’s battled
nagging injuries recently, leaving the team with the choice of Pork
Chop Womack, Ray Willis and Sean Locklear at tackle. The past two years,
the Seahawks have opted not to spend a high draft pick on offensive
linemen, and the neglect is showing.
Quietly, the Seahawks had one of the NFL’s best defenses last
year. Sacks came pouring in. Interceptions too. Opposing scores were
kept low. A lot of the credit should go to 2007 free agents LB Julian
Peterson and DE Patrick Kerney. But the incumbents showed a lot of improvement
as well. MLB Lofa Tatupu and OLB Leroy Hill held down the midfield while
DE Darryl Tapp picked up the quarterback chase. CB Marcus Trufant became
a true shut-down corner. And first-round pick Kelly Jennings will join
him this year in the starting lineup. Safeties Deon Grant and Brian
Russell are underappreciated but top-notch defenders. Added to the mix
is rookie DE Lawrence Jackson, the early favorite to start along the
line. Eventually, 4th round pick Red Bryant should improve upon the
lackluster set of defensive tackles currently starting.
In head coach Mike Holmgren’s last year with the Seahawks in
this role, the team wants to send him off with a deep run into the playoffs
– maybe even his second Super Bowl victory. But if the injuries
to the offense persist well into the regular season, there’s a
chance the ‘Hawk’s streak of division championships –
and even playoff appearances –- could give Holmgren an earlier
exit than he’d hoped.
Strength: linebacker
Weakness: wide receiver
2008 MVP’s: Matt Hasselbeck & Julian Peterson
Unsung hero: Josh Wilson
Record last year: 10-6 (playoffs)
Record this year: 8-8
- Uncle Scurvy - RotoKingdom Staff Writer
