It was bound to happen, the Arizona Cardinals had to come back down to Earth. With four games left for each team in the division and the Cardinals still having to face the Chiefs, Seahawks, Rams, and 49ers this division is far from over. Add to it that the Seahawks are currently only one game behind with the 49ers, Eagles, Rams, and Cardinals and the 49ers are sitting two games back with one game against the Seahawks and Cardinals each left, this division could go to any of these teams. It’s going to be a wild ride. Here’s a preview of the Week 14 matchups in the NFC West:
St. Louis Rams at Washington Redskins, Sunday 1PM EST
With the way both of these teams have been going in the past few weeks this game could definitely be a blow out. The Redskins are in the midst of a four game losing streak and I don’t think switching to Colt McCoy as the starting quarterback is the answer. The Rams, on the other hand, are coming off a 52-0 drubbing of the Raiders and are getting some very quality players back from injury.
The Rams got a huge day from running back Tre Mason in last week’s game against the Raiders. He should be able to have another solid day against the Redskins considering, according to PFF (subscription), the Redskins have a significantly worse run defense grade. The Redskins also have the second worst pass coverage grade, so if they decide to sell out against the run, quarterback Shaun Hill should be able to keep them honest by having success through the air. On defense the Rams need to make sure they keep running back Alfred Morris in check and force McCoy to beat them. In his last start, McCoy earned a PFF grade of -3.8. If the Rams can get an early lead and let their defensive line pin their ears back and rush the quarterback, this could be the fifth straight loss for the Redskins. I think the Rams win this one by at least a touchdown.
Kansas City Chiefs at Arizona Cardinals, Sunday 4:05PM EST
The Cardinals have now lost two games in a row and have a very slim lead in the division. Their schedule doesn’t get any easier as they have to go up against a very game Kansas City team. The Chiefs have also lost two in a row and will be looking for a win in this game so they can stay in the playoff hunt.
This is a matchup that doesn’t suit the Chiefs well at all. What the Cardinals do well on offense is what the Chiefs are worst at on defense. What the Chiefs do well on offense is what the Cardinals are best at on defense. The Chiefs don’t pass much to their wide receivers, they prefer to utilize running back Jamaal Charles much more. While I don’t disagree with this theory given how talented Charles is and how lacking their talent at wide receiver is, the Cardinals have a top ten run defense and will be looking to shut Charles down early. Their pass coverage, which was absolutely gashed by the Atlanta Falcons last week, is about middle of the pack. The Cardinals offense, which lives off the deep ball, will be looking to take advantage of a weak secondary (even more so now with the absence of Eric Berry). I don’t think this game is going to be as close as a lot of people think and the Cardinals should win by 10 points.
San Francisco 49ers at Oakland Raiders, Sunday 4:25PM EST
The 49ers are coming off an embarrassing loss to their division rival the Seattle Seahawks. With this loss there is even more speculation as to how soon after the season is done before the front office fires head coach Jim Harbaugh or if they trade him instead. There is also more talk of firing their offensive coordinator Greg Roman. What seems to get lost in all of this is the fact they there’s still a lot of football left to be played. Their game this week is against a Raiders team who just got embarrassed by the Rams and will be looking to show the world they’re not as bad as they looked in that game.
The 49ers absolutely have to win this game if they want any chance at making the playoffs. For this reason and the fact that they completely outmatch the Raiders, I expect their offense to finally start producing. If they can’t do it this week, they genuinely need to be concerned. According to PFF the Raiders have the eighth worst run defense grade so look for Frank Gore to get the ball early and often and open up the defense for quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Speaking of Kaepernick, this could be the week the coaching staff decides to let him run since their backs are up against the wall and their jobs could very depend on it. On offense I don’t expect the Raiders to be able to get anything going against this 49ers defense. Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is going to give rookie quarterback Derek Carr all kinds of looks to confuse him and bring blitzes from spots he’s not expecting. Look for the defense to have multiple sacks in this game. This should be a game the 49ers win by multiple touchdowns and can hopefully get their offense on track since they’ll be going into Seattle next week.
Seattle Seahawks at Philadelphia Eagles, Sunday 4:25PM EST
This game could very well be a preview of the NFC Championship game. Seattle has won five of their last six games and have won their last two games by a combined score of 38-6. The Eagles have won four of their last five games and their offense seems to really be clicking with Mark Sanchez at the helm. It’s also worth noting that the Eagles have won ten straight home games. However, Seattle’s style of play matches up extremely well with the Eagles’.
The Eagles have the seventh best run defense grade in the league, but Seattle has Marshawn Lynch. The only hope any team has of shutting Lynch down is that Seattle just doesn’t call plays for him. Last week Lynch had 104 yards rushing against the seventh best run defense. When Seattle can get Lynch going, quarterback Russell Wilson becomes that much better. The Eagles will be forced to drop extra men in the box to stop Lynch. On the other side of the ball the Eagles have a pretty good running back of their own who is finally starting to look like his former self. LeSean McCoy is hitting his stride again and is extremely dangerous. However, the Seahawks defense is an extremely fast one that has amazing pursuit of the ball. They have the defensive line and the linebacking corps to stop McCoy and the safeties to help out if they need them to. In the pass game, the Seahawks boast one of the better secondaries in the league, headlined by Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas. If they can get a pass rush on quarterback Mark Sanchez, he will undoubtedly throw multiple interceptions and absolutely cripple the Eagles offense. The Seahawks win this game by 10 points.