With five games left in the regular season, the NFC West is completely up for grabs. With the Seahawks beating the Cardinals last week and the 49ers beating the Redskins, the Cardinals are now down to a two game lead over both the 49ers and the Seahawks with one game left against each and those two still have to play each other twice. There’s going to be a lot of change in this division over the next few weeks and any of these three teams could win this division. Here’s a preview of the matchups for this week in the NFC West:
Seattle Seahawks at San Francisco 49ers, Thursday 8:30PM EST
This might be the best rivalry in football. These two teams are both coming off wins and both teams are just about mirror images of each other. Neither team is going to do anything that really catches the other one off guard, it’s just going to come down to who executes better on the field. It is worth noting, however, that Seattle hasn’t won in San Francisco since 2008.
It almost goes without saying that both of these teams like to run the ball. They are built to run the ball first and wear teams down. However, both defenses are built to stop the run and make teams on dimensional. According the PFF (subscription), the 49ers have the fourth best run defense grade. One thing that stands out about their run defense is that when they have faced “power” running backs this season they have struggled. Alfred Morris ran for 125 yards and one touchdown, Mark Ingram ran for 120 yards, and DeMarco Murray ran for 118 yards and one touchdown. This week the 49ers will have the tall task of stopping Marshawn Lynch, probably the hardest running back to bring down in the entire NFL.
The best secondary in this game might not belong to Seattle this time around. The Seahawks’ secondary has a PFF pas coverage grade of 8.2 while the 49ers’ have the second best grade in the league at 24.2. With the lack of receiving weapons the Seahawks have on offense, it could be a long day for Russell Wilson if Seattle decides to throw a lot. On top of that, the 49ers’ pass rush has been vastly improved since the return of outside linebacker Aldon Smith. With Seattle’s offensive line struggling mightily in pass protection, Smith and company could rack up their sack total if they can get Seattle’s offense in obvious passing downs.
As for the 49ers’ offense, it has been lackluster to say the least. They have no rhythm from drive to drive, receivers have been dropping balls at an alarming rate, and at times they have been unable to get running back Frank Gore involved. The 49ers receiving corps leads the league in dropped balls with 29. If they want to stand a chance at beating the Seahawks and taking sole possession of second place in the division their offense is the part that needs to improve the most. If they have a game like they did last week it’s going to be a blowout. I expect the Seahawks to break their six year winless streak in San Francisco and win this game by a touchdown.
Oakland Raiders at St. Louis Rams, Sunday 1PM EST
These two teams are a combined 5-17. Judging by that alone this game looks to be a snoozer. However, if you’ve watched the Rams or the Raiders play a game you know it’ll be anything but that. Their records may be awful, but both of these teams sure play hard.
This is a matchup that certainly favors the Rams. What they do well on offense is what the Raiders have trouble with on defense. That’s running the ball. The Rams’ rookie running back Tre Mason is small but runs very hard. Running the ball effectively will also slow down the Raiders’ pass rush, which is the best part of their defense. The biggest part of this game is something that can’t be quantified. It’s the fact that the Raiders just got their first win of the season and it was against their biggest division rival, the Kansas City Chiefs. I think the Raiders will have a let down game and the Rams win it by ten points.
Arizona Cardinals at Atlanta Falcons, Sunday 4:05PM EST
This is a matchup of division leaders who are both coming off losses. The Cardinals are coming off a beating by the Seattle Seahawks and the Falcons are coming off a loss to the Cleveland Browns which was basically lost due to coaching ineptitude on the part of the Falcons. Both teams will be looking to get back into the win column.
This matchup isn’t quite as lopsided as one might expect it to be between a 9-2 team and a 4-7 team. The Falcons offense certainly has the fire power to stay with just about any team. It works in the Falcons’ favor that they don’t rely on the run since the Cardinals have such a stout run defense. The problem for the Falcons is their defense. It isn’t hard to stop the Cardinals’ offense, especially since they now have Drew Stanton at quarterback and he is limited in what he’s able to do. This offense is extremely reliant on the deep pass. There’s a good chance Larry Fitzgerald won’t play again this week, so their best intermediate route runner won’t be there to bring safeties down. Safeties will now be able to cheat back a little more to help with any deep passes. What’s going to make this game lopsided though is the difference in coaching. Bruce Arians is worlds ahead of Mike Smith. While the Falcons stand a chance to pull off the upset, I still expect the Cardinals to win by multiple scores.