We are headed to the Wild Wild West where the Arizona Cardinals of all teams won the division last year and made it all the way to the Super Bowl with a great run before playing in one of the greatest Super Bowls ever.
A lot of things have changed the landscape of the division this year and I'm not so sure the Cardinals and Kurt Warner can hold to their crown. Yeah, I've got my favorite here.
NFC West
Arizona Cardinals
Coming off what could be the most improbable run since the Amazin' Mets won the World Series in 1969, the Cardinals are hoping to follow it up. They certainly have the offensive firepower with Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.
I'm going to give Ken Wisenhunt the benefit of the doubt that the defense will be better this year with another year in his system. The schedule does go in their favor with two games against the intra-division Rams plus the Lions (in back-to-back weeks no less in December).
Most important player: Edgerin James is gone and an again quarterback's best friend is a good running game. So Tim Hightower needs to at least run enough interference for Warner to get the ball to Fitzgerald and Boldin for this team to shine and for the first time defend a division and conference title.
San Francisco 49ers
The Michael Crabtree situation is just the tip of the iceberg here. I give coach Mike Singletary every chance that he's going to point this team in the right direction, but you can only get so far on coaching. There is no quarterback and Frank Gore can only do so much with nine guys consistently in the box. They'll have a shot at winning some games because of the schedule, it's a matter of finishing them off, though.
Most important player: It will come down to the defense giving the offense short fields and a chance to be in games. This is Singletary's strength and while it improved toward the end of last year, there's nothing saying it can continue to do so into 2009.
Seattle Seahawks
Mike Holmgren is out and Jim Mora, Jr. is in. It shouldn't make much of a difference who is the head coach here. Look for a marked improvement if the emergency room can see few visits. In comes Julius Jones to lead the running game, complimented by T.J. Duckett.
I really like this defense led by Lofa Tatupu. They should be OK in bringing back the luster in Seattle.
Most important player: It all comes down to Hasselbeck. If he can stay healthy, his targets like Houshmanzadeh and Nate Burleson. It was clear last year that without him, this offense can't run. It sounds like everything is going to be good with him, so be ready for some fire here.
St. Louis Rams
Can't get worse than it did last season for the Rams. Head coach Steve Spagnuolo revamped the defense and is trying to bring back that gold shine that came with the change from simple yellow on those helmets to gold a few years ago.
Stephen Jackson and Marc Bulger are still in town, but those are the only names that ring out on this team. There are no weapons on the outside for Bulger to throw to.
Most important player: As Jackson goes, so go the Rams. The first half of the schedule is not kind to the Rams as they play Minnesota, Green Bay and Indianapolis. Should get a little better in the second half with New Orleans, but not sure how much that is going to matter.
Here we go. Prediction time:
Seattle Seahawks 10-6 - Hasselbeck stays healthy and they win the division. Easy choice.
Arizona Cardinals 9-7 - Not much of a Super Bowl hangover, but not enough to get them back in the playoffs.
San Francisco 49ers 5-11 -- No real quarterback puts this team in a pickle.
St. Louis Rams 3-13 -- One game better in the standings, but much improved overall. Schedule just too much for them to overcome.
Here's a look back at each division we've done so far.
Sept. 1: AFC South
Sept 2: AFC West
Sept. 3: AFC East
Sept. 4: AFC North
Sept. 7: NFC South
Sept. 8: NFC West (Today)
Wednesday, Sept. 9: NFC East
Thursday, Sept. 10: NFC North
Friday, Sept. 11: Playoffs and Super Bowl XLIV picks
OK, now to some "real news." Ha! Well, not so much. Saw this today in my prep for the blog. I showed you Friday, the girls of the Lingerie Football League. Well, one such girl showed a little more of herself Friday night in Chicago. Watch this video here and enjoy the pic. I'd considering buying the PPV if I knew this was going to happen more often. Ha.
No that's not the Nussie Hunter pic of the day. Got a better one for you. This one is a WAG that you all will enjoy. It's a hat tip to "The Captain" for getting with another lady. I'm talking about Minka Kelly, the new lady of Derek Jeter. Who as Covino and Rich discussed is probably a better "playa" than a player for the Yanks. She was the topic of this NY Times story today which asks "Minka Who?" but if you're a fan of "Friday Night Lights" you already know her. I'm just helping the introduction process.
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