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The NFC West is a division
that should be a lot more competitive in 2006
than it was in 2005, when, the Seattle Seahawks
dominated the uninspiring division in route to
the first Super Bowl appearance in the history
of its mostly undistinguished franchise.
Having said that, and knowing
that Seattle lost in the Super Bowl to the Pittsburgh
Steelers, I fully expect the Seahawks to win this
division once again and return this season as
one of the conference’s most legitimate
championship contenders. Here’s my breakdown
on the NFC West, a division that may feature only
one playoff team.
2006 NFC West Preview - Arizona
Cardinals
Okay, now all excuses are
off for the Cardinals. After acquiring running
back Edgerrin James and drafting rookie quarterback,
Matt Leinart, the Cards should be a much-improved
team than the one that ended last season with
a disappointing 5-11 record.
Arizona also has a new stadium
and an excitement buzzing around the team that
hasn’t been seen since Jim Hart was the
Cards’ quarterback three decades in St.
Louis.
Starting quarterback, Kurt
Warner has all the offensive help he needs now
with two outstanding wide receivers (Anquan Boldin
and Larry Fitzgerald) and James in the backfield.
The big question to me is
whether or not they will be able to stop anyone
defensively.
My answer surprisingly is
- yes. The Cards have plenty of young defensive
talent and they look like they may be ready to
put it all together this season.
Head coach Denny Green has
been a winner throughout his entire career and
if he can’t turn the Cardinals around then
maybe no one can. Time will tell, but I expect
the Cards to win at least two division games this
season and possibly all three home games in route
to a record that should be right around 8-8.
2006 NFC West Preview - Seattle
Seahawks
Recent history suggests that
the Seattle Seahawks will struggle mightily just
to make the playoffs this season, but I say that
the Seahawks are going to buck that disturbing
trend. They should win at least four division
games and possibly five or six, setting themselves
up for another deep playoff run in the process.
Other than the loss of All-Pro
guard Steve Hutchinson, who left for team for
big money in Minnesota, Seattle returns the majority
of their players who helped them reach last season’s
Super Bowl, including running back Shawn Alexander
and quarterback, Matt Hasslebeck, their two best
players.
If the Seahawks can overcome
the loss of Hutchinson, then they should be right
back in the hunt for the NFC title with as good
a chance as any team in the conference of winning
it all.
2006 NFC West Preview - Carolina
Panthers
I fully expect the Rams to
take a step backwards this season as they begin
their first season of the Scott Linehan era. The
Rams, who were formerly known as “The Greatest
Show on Turf” because of their high-powered
offense under former offensive coordinator and
head coach, Mike Martz, will look to balance their
offense more under Linehan and become more of
a power team on both sides of the ball.
The Rams made another significant
hiring when they hired former New Orleans head
coach Jim Haslett to become their defensive coordinator.
The may have floundered miserably as a head coach,
but he certainly knows defense.
However, I suspect that all
of the changes in St. Louis will take some time
adjusting to – and I can’t wait to
see how classy wide receivers, Isaac Bruce and
Torri Holt, react at not being thrown the ball
nearly as much, especially if they’re open.
Whatever happens, the Rams
are definitely not going to be the team that has
lit up NFL defenses for the past half-decade with
an aerial attack that deserves to be mentioned
with some of the greatest of all-time. Beyond
that, I can say that if the Rams win three division
games this season they should be very thankful.
2006 NFC West Preview - San Francisco
49ers
The 49ers have nowhere to
go but up. The Niners grabbed an incredible prospect
in Maryland tight end Vernon Davis with their
first round selection this year and by all accounts,
he could turn out to be a legitimate star. Combine
Davis with second-year quarterback, Alex Smith,
last season’s number one overall selection,
not to mention another outstanding tight end in
Eric Johnson, and the 49ers could have the beginning
foundations of a team that could one day conceivably
bounce back into contention sooner than anyone
expected.
The Niners also made their
best acquisition of all by attaining the services
of Norv Turner who will take over as offensive
coordinator.
Turner may be ill suited
to the role of head coach, but everyone knows
that Turner is one of the game’s most innovative
offensive minds. His hiring alone should help
speed up the learning curve of Smith, who struggled
tremendously at times last season, throwing only
one touchdown and 11 interceptions.
I think the Niners will definitely
win two division games and possibly three. However,
they still have a long way to go before they are
anywhere close to being reminiscent of the fabled
49ers of yesteryear.
Eric Williams is a sports columnist
for the Philadelphia Sunday Sun and syndicated
freelance writer who can be heard every Wednesday
at 3:15pm EST on www.BetUSradio.com. Contact Eric
at [email protected].
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