Over the course of the next few weeks, leading up the kickoff of the NFL season, I’ll be looking around the grand landscape of the league. We’ll preview all 32 teams, division by division – up next, it’s my 2019 NFC West preview.
Arizona Cardinals
2018 was an odd season for the Arizona Cardinals. First year head coach Steve Wilks coached the team to the worst record in the NFL. Josh Rosen was the 33rd rated quarterback in the league. The Cards fielded the worst offense in the league, and their defense wasn’t too much better. But, instead of playing the waiting game and showing some patience with this regime, the Cardinals canned Wilks. On draft day, they shipped Rosen to the Miami Dolphins. They seemed content to perform a hard reset for the second season in a row.
Enter Kliff Kingsbury. To say the Cardinals raised some eyebrows by signing the former Texas Tech coach would be an understatement. The move was met with its fair share of criticism. But, the hope is to obviously install a much more dynamic offense to get this team out of the basement in not just the NFC West, but the entire NFL. It’s a bit of a pipe dream, but it could theoretically work.
Kingsbury got the previous regime’s quarterback out of town and drafted his own guy, Oklahoma’s Heisman winning quarterback Kyler Murray. He’s as exciting a prospect as we’ve seen in a long time, but there were certainly some fair questions regarding his ability to translate to the NFL game. But, again…theoretically…this looks like a promising marriage. Factor in that the Cardinals have established weapons in the form of David Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, and promising players like Christian Kirk and 2nd round pick Andy Isabella, and you see this team has some legitimate pieces in place on an offense that hopes to be explosive. They just have to sort out that porous mess of an offensive line.
On defense, they sure as hell have some talent. Arguably the best cornerback in the league, Patrick Peterson (though he will be serving a six game suspension to start the season, meaning 2nd round pick Byron Murphy will be thrust into action early). One of the premier pass rushers in the league in Chandler Jones, and some nice complementary talent to go with it. Most importantly, though, is that Kingsbury brought in experienced, and damn good, defensive coordinator Vance Joseph to call the defense. Ace move in my book, and the Cardinals defense should be much improved in 2019 because of it.
Prediction: I hope the Cardinals brass gives this experiment more time than the Wilks one, because it really is intriguing. If all goes according to plan, this could be a fun offense to watch in a couple of seasons. That said, I don’t think they’ll be able to pull it off in this division this season. The Cards will likely find themselves at the bottom of the NFC West yet again, though this time, hovering closer to six wins thanks to the defense alone.
Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams had to do some soul searching after that brutal kick in the teeth that was that 13-3 Super Bowl loss. The team was so incredibly prolific that you know it hurt to go up against the New England Patriots and put up just three measly points. Sean McVay, noted hot shot coach, was out-coached and the Rams were out-played at every turn.
On offense, it should be business as usual for the McVay-led Rams. I say “should” because we still don’t really understand the full extent of what is going on with the knee of stud running back Todd Gurley. Gurley was third in the league in rushing yards in 2018, with 1,251, but his 17 touchdowns gave him the top slot in that category. There’s no denying he can be an outright force when healthy, but the given how he disappeared during the postseason, you can’t help but wonder whether or not he can be dependable over the long haul.
Otherwise, this offense should be good – the Rams have a receiving duo unlike any other in Brandin Cooks and Robert Woods, who combined for 2,423 yards in 2018. Jared Goff made a huge step up under McVay and has now become one of the brightest young quarterbacks in the league. But, the Rams just don’t have the offensive line they did a season ago.
The defense is where I have the most serious questions – I just don’t know how long you can last by patching up spots with veteran (borderline old) free agents – that’s exactly what they did with Clay Matthews and Eric Weddle. Plus, let’s be real – it ain’t like Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib became the cornerback duo we thought they would.
As long as they have Aaron Donald, they’ll have a legitimate force on defense. Hell, the guy’s the best defensive player in the league. But, is his presence enough? Rookie 4th rounder Greg Gaines is drawing some praise in camp, and some have said he’s already an upgrade from the departed Ndamukong Suh. But, for all the talented names they have on that defense, it sure wasn’t productive in 2018. We’ll see.
Prediction: I could see this team taking a major step back in 2019. The hope is that the ugly Super Bowl loss serves as motivation, that this unit will use last year’s playoff experience for better. But, I don’t know. Are they probably still the kings of the NFC West? Yeah – they’re the favorites…but because of the offensive line and stopgap additions on defense, that gap is a little more narrow between them and Seattle.
San Francisco 49ers
Boy, 2018 was supposed to go a lot differently for the San Francisco 49ers, huh? They were a lot of folks’ sexy pick to contend in the NFC after bringing in quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and paying him a ton of money. But, that dream ended pretty quickly when Handsome Jimmy G tore his ACL in Week 3. To make matters worse, running back Jerick McKinnon, who was supposed to have a breakout year for the Niners, tore his ACL in the season opener.
Bad luck early on in a competitive division, and it wasn’t ever even really close. The Niners finished 2018 at 4-12, and now, the honeymoon may be over for Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch. It’s time for this regime to start putting wins on the board.
Thankfully, I think they can. Not only that, I think this team could contend for a playoff spot, and be the team we thought they were going to be in 2018.
This offense is going to get a surge in talent just from getting Jimmy G and McKinnon back alone. But, you factor in the addition of Tevin Coleman, who was a S T U D under Shanahan in Atlanta, and the drafting of Deebo Samuel and Jalen Hurd, and you’ve got an influx of talent that is going to give this offense the shot in the arm it needs. That’s not even to mention George Kittle, who is a top two tight end in the league! What gets me about the 49ers offense is the offensive line, though – Joe Staley is a rock. Mike McGlinchey looks poised to become one of the best young linemen in the league. Weston Richburg is healthy again. This could become one of the sneaky good units in the league.
On defense, the 49ers have one of the most underrated players in the NFL in DeForest Buckner – dude is an absolute meteor. But, outside of him, they didn’t have a whole hell of a lot of disruptors along the defensive line. That was obviously a mission for Lynch – as he went out and traded for Dee Ford and drafted Nick Bosa. Suddenly, alongside Buckner, Bosa (assuming his ankle sprain isn’t as bad as it sounds…) and Ford make for a formidable defensive line.
They also signed Kwon Alexander to big deal to play alongside Fred Warner. Richard Sherman continues to play the cornerback position very well, though he’s not the lockdown force he used to be. They also signed former first rounder Jason Verrett, and if he can stay healthy, could prove to be a huge addition.
Prediction: There is so much talent on this team, and for whatever reason…maybe people are scared to predict ’em to win too many games after what happened last year…but people are sleeping on just how good this team could be. I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see them win the division, to be honest. You know what? I’m willing to call it – this team is going to be what we thought it would be in 2018. Given potential regressions in Los Angeles and Seattle, I think San Francisco rises up to claim the NFC West.
Seattle Seahawks
Rebuild shmebuild – instead of stripping the whole thing down and starting over, the Seattle Seahawks did what they do best: they ran the damn ball. This offense rushed for a whopping 2,560 yards on the legs of Chris Carson, Mike Davis, Rashaad Penny, and quarterback Russell Wilson. Davis is gone, but the core of that group returns. Moreover, the offensive line, which was once considered a weakness (and I do mean, like….”worst in the league” type of weakness), looks like a strength of the offense now. This is a tough, physical unit that is going to punish teams.
That opens things up for Wilson to do his thing at quarterback. In the passing attack, Tyler Lockett is going to have to step up and fill the void left by Doug Baldwin. Not that he’s incapable of it, it just thins out the receiving corps a little. The team drafted D.K. Metcalf, who some think could be the best receiver out of this year’s draft, but knee surgery could mean he misses some time this season. They’re optimistic he’ll be back for Week 1, though.
The defense, though, doesn’t look like your traditional Pete Carroll Seahawks defense. Bobby Wagner is one of the best linebackers in the NFL, but there’s a whole lot of unproven commodities outside of him. Jarran Reed is going to miss six games, serving a suspension. Earl Thomas is now a member of the Baltimore Ravens. I mean, there’s some serious overhaul on defense that’s going to take some adjustment. This unit is a HUGE question mark heading into 2019.
Prediction: Love what the Seahawks are on offense, but I think the turnover, the suspensions, and the injuries on defense are too much to overcome in a division that has the potent Rams offense, the talented 49ers offense, and the new additions of Kliff Kingsbury and Kyler Murray. All things considered, I think this is going to be the rebuilding year we thought we were getting out of the Seahawks a year ago.
Projected Finish
- San Francisco 49ers
- Los Angeles Rams
- Seattle Seahawks
- Arizona Cardinals
2019 NFL DIVISIONAL PREVIEWS
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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