The NFC West hasn’t exactly been considered a powerful division in the league the past couple of seasons, and they’re not getting much respect going into the coming year either. The Arizona Cardinals have been the king of the hill in the NFC West for at least the last 2 years, including 2008 when they advanced through the playoffs to the Super Bowl and came within one outstanding Santonio Holmes catch of being crowned champions. But the Cardinals will have a different look this year, with the main reason they were successful the last 2 years, QB Kurt Warner, having retired. The Cards also lost receiver Anquan Boldin in a trade and their best player on defense, LB Karlos Dansby, to free agency. All the players are saying that they have total confidence that Matt Leinart will pick up the reins from Warner and the team’s success will continue, but I’m not convinced that Leinart will even win the starting job from veteran Derek Anderson, acquired from Cleveland. Anderson is the type of player who, although he struggled with the Browns, could have success in a good situation. With Warner gone, the top quarterback in the division is Seattle’s Matt Hasselback, who is on the downside of his career. Alex Smith looks like he is beginning to establish himself as “the man” in San Francisco, but still has a lot to prove. The St.Louis Rams may have the division’s best future QB in Sam Bradford, but he will likely have major rookie growing pains, assuming he gets on the field, this year. The winner of this division is not going to get there through the play of their quarterback, they’ll need good coaching, a strong running game and a hard-nosed defense. That’s why my favorite is the 49ers. I love Mike Singletary’s leadership, the running game is solid with Frank Gore and a competent line, and the defense, with stud LB Patrick Willis leading the way, is on the rise. Coach Ken Whisenhunt’s Cardinals will be in the hunt, despite the player losses, and Larry Fitzgerald is still the best player in this division. The Rams are slowly putting the pieces together, but I don’t see them being a threat this season. The great unknown is what Pete Carroll will bring to the table in Seattle. The Seahawks don’t have a great deal of talent on their roster, and Carroll, in his previous NFL jobs, did not show the ability to get a team to over-achieve.
