The NFC West was a league powerhouse not two seasons ago. The San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams, Arizona Cardinals, and Seattle Seahawks were seen in a similar light as the AFC East, AFC North, and NFC East are now. However, the NFC West power rankings are an example of how quickly things change in the NFL.
Be sure to check out our other divisional power rankings here: AFC East | AFC South | AFC North | AFC West | NFC South | NFC East
NFC West Power Rankings
A team can win a Super Bowl in February and less than 18 months later be almost entirely unrecognizable. A high-flying spread attack can have its wings clipped.
Meanwhile, another team can trade their franchise QB, a man who helped propel the franchise to a Super Bowl victory and another appearance, and get better. The last is the most consistent, but the team’s inability to keep quarterbacks on two feet has been frustrating.
1) San Francisco 49ers
It’s not every day in the NFL that it doesn’t seem to matter if your starting quarterback will be healthy or not by the time Week 1 rolls around, but that’s the direction we’ve traveled with the 49ers. Nevertheless, as an added bonus, San Francisco’s starting QB is already back and ready for regular-season action.
Adding Javon Hargrave to an already abominable defensive front was quite the gung-ho move from John Lynch. But the 49ers have always built their defensive unit from front to back, even when the league is beginning to shift in the opposite direction. Zigging while everyone else zags is Belichickian of the Niners’ front office.
Steve Wilks has been a bit more man-heavy than DeMeco Ryans and Robert Saleh before him, but the continuity San Fran has on defense has made it so Wilks is reshaping his biases to fit the defensive talent at his disposal.
On offense, the 49ers are built upon creating windows over the middle while boasting some of the best YAC weapons in the league. Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffrey are incredibly dangerous with the ball in their hands, while Brandon Aiyuk has blossomed into one of the more devastating route runners in the NFL.
2) Seattle Seahawks
If Geno Smith plays the way he did a season ago, Seattle could push San Francisco for the division crown. The addition of Jaxon Smith-Njigba creates a trio of WRs only matched by the one in Cincinnati.
If the young tackles can play as well as they were early in their first year without hitting the rookie wall, it would go a long way for the Seahawks’ offense. Ultimately, Seattle’s offense should be able to keep up with the pace.
But they’ll need improved defensive outcomes to upend the 49ers. That means improving against the run, finding a role for Bobby Wagner to thrive in at this stage of his career, and staying healthy on the back end.
Devon Witherspoon is the truth, and Tariq Woolen was astonishingly impressive as a Day 3 rookie. A trio of Quandre Diggs, Julian Love, and Jamal Adams (whenever healthy) make an underwhelming unit heading into 2023 look remarkably sufficient.
3) Los Angeles Rams
In June, the Rams had nearly 40 rookies on their roster. They probably had another year of kicking the can down the road before having to rebuild, but L.A. decided to rip off the band-aid and get it over with.
The only thing keeping this roster from being last in their divisional power rankings is their competition, the worst roster in the NFL. Sean McVay, Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp, and Aaron Donald should be enough to outdo Arizona within the division.
However, it could behoove them to lose as often as possible so they can make sure their first first-round pick since 2016 is spent keeping a local college product within the city limits.
4) Arizona Cardinals
Although Kyler Murray is aiming for a Week 1 return from his ACL tear last December, that outcome remains to be seen. The 2023 NFL season is incredibly important for Murray’s future, considering the kind of draft capital that new GM Monti Ossenfort has acquired.
There is a new general manager and head coach in town on a rebuilding team with an expensive QB that they didn’t draft. The Cardinals could have an opportunity to go young and inexpensive at the position with one of Caleb Williams or Drake Maye.
If they’re not in a position to draft either, it likely means that Murray was able to strap a lifeless Arizona roster onto his back and carry them to a bunch of surprise victories.
We’ve also seen more work from under center since Murray’s injury and the introduction of Drew Petzing’s offense. The Air Raid has been sniped out of the air for a more West Coast look, and that means more under-center play-action to complement wide-zone runs. It will be fascinating to see how Murray looks in those conditions.