Los Angeles Rams
The Rams went all in for a Super Bowl last year and they won it, now they will try to repeat and they have a lot of guys back. Matthew Stafford proved he can win as long as he’s not in Detroit. They put a ton of talent around him and he actually raised the games of some of his guys. Cooper Kupp had a ridiculous season last year winning the receiving triple crown (receptions, yards, and TDs). He and Stafford found a connection that is incredible. He’s arguably the best WR in the league. Odell Beckham was really good after signing with the team and helped them get to the Super Bowl, but he injured his knee and still hasn’t signed anywhere. The Rams aren’t waiting around, they went out and got Allen Robinson. Robinson will be a great addition and regardless of his lackluster year in Chicago last year, I think he still has plenty in the tank. Van Jefferson should be their third guy although he had knee surgery that is going to keep him out a few weeks. I could see this team re-signing Beckham later in the year if they don’t find any depth before he’s ready to play. TE Tyler Higbee is a solid player.
The running game should be better with Cam Akers back after a healthy offseason. He came back in record time after his Achilles injury. He’s a really good back and they still have Derrell Henderson Jr. backing him up. The line has a bit of a shake up as Andrew Whitworth retired and Austin Corbett left in free agency. Joe Noteboom is a young guy they clearly like because they made no effort to find any other replacement for Whitworth at LT. The OG position was going to have a little competition as Bobby Evans and David Edwards are the holdovers and the team drafted Logan Bruss but he’s out for the year already. It’s actually fourth-year man Coleman Shelton holding down the RG spot with Edwards at LG. C Brian Allen and RT Rob Havenstein return, they aren’t All-Pro guys but they are solid.
The defense features the best defensive player in the league (no offense to TJ Watt and his DPOY award), Aaron Donald. He’s simply the most dominate defensive presence in the NFL. They also have the best defensive back in the NFL, Jalen Ramsey. It really helps your team when you have two of the three or four best defensive players in the league on your defense. Donald is joined up front by A’Shawn Robinson and Greg Gaines, solid players but not game wreckers. They are going to miss Sebastian Joseph-Day.
The LBs are led by Leonard Floyd on the outside, he’s really found his stride with the Rams. They are going to miss Von Miller unless either Justin Hollins (the presumed other starter) or Terrell Lewis really break out. The team did add Bobby Wagner inside and he’s one of the best MLBs the league has ever seen. He is 32 but the Rams are all about winning now and they don’t care how long he’s around. He’s an upgrade for them now, that’s what matters. Ernest Jones played well for them last year so they like him just fine.
The secondary is built around Jalen Ramsey’s incredible skills. He can basically play any position in the secondary and he can even play like a LB at times. They have built the rest of the group with flexibility in mind so they can move Ramsey where he’s needed most and other can fill in around him. They brought back Troy Hill after his one-year experiment in Cleveland, he knows this defense and he can play inside or outside. They also have David Long Jr and Robert Rochell to throw out there at CB. Taylor Rapp, Jordan Fuller, and Nick Scott give them options at safety. They can do a lot of the same things and give them flexibility when they move Ramsey to the slot or into the box. Ramsey makes the whole thing work, he’s one of the best defensive backs ever.
San Francisco 49ers
This is sort of a “believe it before I see it” pick. The fact that Trey Lance is a major unknown is working in the 49ers favor here. I know I don’t trust Kliff Kingsbury and Kyler Murray in Arizona and I’m not betting on a Seattle team led by Geno Smith. So here we are. The 49ers want us to believe Trey Lance is their QB superstar of the future. I’m more willing to bet that they can make him good enough to come in second in the division with Shanahan’s running game and that defense. Lance gets a happy Deebo Samuel (a new big contract will do that for you), TE George Kittle (hopefully staying healthy), WR Brandon Aiyuk, RB Elijah Mitchell and FB Kyle Juszczyk (yep, Shanahan still uses the fullback, it’s like he’s from a different century).
Mitchell was the find last year as he stepped in after a myriad of injuries depleted the RB room. Mitchell gets the advantage of running in Shanahan’s RB friendly offense and running behind some good to great o-linemen. LT Trent Williams is arguably the best in the league (and until Green Bay’s David Bakhtiari is healthy, it’s not an argument). RT Mike McGlinchey is pretty solid too. The middle of the line is in flux because C Alex Mack retired and G Laken Tomlinson left in free agency. That would leave Daniel Brunskill as the only returner inside but he’s already being replaced by rookie Spencer Burford. Jake Brendel will get a crack at center and Aaron Banks was a high draft pick two years ago and should get a chance at one guard spot. It’s not an elite group to say the least but if there is any coach who’s going to figure out his offensive line, it’s Kyle Shanahan.
The defense is built off their strength up front but they need some guys to get healthy for that to work out for them. DE Nick Bosa finally got healthy last season and broke out with 15.5 sacks and looks like the star they drafted him to be. He has top five pass rusher written all over him. Arik Armstead is a mainstay, he’s banged up at the beginning of camp, they really need him to be healthy all year. DT Javon Kinlaw missed most of last season and they need him to bring his considerable size and talent to the interior. Samson Ebukam is the veteran pass rusher opposite Bosa but watch out for rookie Drake Jackson. He’s a talented kid who just needed to get away from the terrible coaching he got a USC, now he can really show what he can do.
They build everything off of the strength of their line because they play three LBs who are 230 lbs. or less. MLB Fred Warner is one of the best in the business (he might be the best). He flies around like a missile and destroys offenses. Dre Greenlaw does pretty much the same thing, he just gets less credit because Warner is awesome. Azeez Al-Shaair is similar in size and style he’s just not as good as Warner or Greenlaw.
The secondary is where things get a little rough. They did sign Charvarius Ward at one CB spot, he’s a legit NFL starter. Emmanuel Moseley is solid but is a guy you’re almost always looking to replace but he’s just good enough to hold off the other options. They did re-sign Jason Verrett who was hurt last year, he’s hurt every year. There are three things in this world you can count on; death, taxes, and Jason Verrett getting injured. Jimmie Ward returns at one safety spot, he’s 31, he’s not elite but he’s versatile and steady. The let Jaquiski Tartt go and they have George Odom or Talanoa Hufanga to replace him, I have no idea if that’s good or bad. I do know that replacing Tartt isn’t exactly asking to replace Ronnie Lott, the bar is much lower.
Arizona Cardinals
I don’t trust Kliff Kingsbury. I don’t trust Kyler Murray. I don’t trust the offensive line to hold up all year. And I really don’t trust this defense. Murray may do some dazzling things on the field but he doesn’t always do the mundane things you have to do to play winning football. I’ve never been a big fan of Kingsbury as a coach and he hasn’t done anything to change my mind. This team will be without WR DeAndre Hopkins for the first six weeks of the season, while they may think they have a good replacement in Marquise Brown, I don’t see it. They already have a small, speedy WR in Rondale Moore and they proved last season they had no idea how to use him. Anyone with Moore’s skills shouldn’t average only eight yards a catch. The offense might give Brown more opportunities but I’m not sold on that production being useful. Once Hopkins returns, what’s Brown’s role then? They also have AJ Green back. Zach Ertz was re-signed and they drafted Trey McBride, the best TE in the draft, for an offense that generally wasn’t built to use TEs they now have two. They used Ertz a lot last season after he was acquired from Philadelphia and now, they have to try to incorporate more TE usage. I really don’t know where this offense is going.
James Connor was a touchdown machine last year. He didn’t have a ton of yardage but he made the most of his touches. He had 15 rushing and three receiving TDs. He’s a good back who’s a tough runner and he’s useful in the passing game. His TDs are going to regress, there’s no way he’s going to stay that effective at scoring, but he could be a bigger part of the offense overall. The offensive line is aging. RG Will Hernandez is the only real young guy and he’s a castoff from the Giants after a few rough years in New York. LT DJ Humphries is pretty good and he’ll only be 29 at the end of the year, the rest of the line is well past their prime. LG Justin Pugh is 32, C Rodney Hudson is 33, and RT Kelvin Beachem is also 33. There’s not much depth and if injuries happen, they’re in trouble.
This defense leaves a lot to be desired. Up front they still have JJ Watt. He’s a big name but he’s well past his time as a game changer. He played in seven games last year and had one sack, unfortunately, that makes him one of the better pass rushers they still have. Zach Allen is the other DE and he had four sacks in 15 games, which is a career high for him. Rashard Lawrence and Leki Fotu are the nose tackles and they don’t pass rush at all.
Chandler Jones left for Las Vegas leaving Markus Golden and his 11 sacks as the only pass rushing threat left. Golden had a solid year but in his eight-year career he’s only had double digit sacks three times and it’s never happened twice in a row. The other OLB spot is either Devon Kennard or Dennis Gardeck at the moment unless they turn to a rookie like Myjai Sanders or Cameron Thomas. It’s not a great place to be. Their last two first round picks were ILB Zaven Collins and Isaiah Simmons. They need both those guys to turn it on because spending back-to-back first-round picks on ILBs is pretty crazy when you think about it. I’m not sure they have the most faith in them either consider they signed veterans Nick Vigil and Ben Niemann, not household names but guys you could turn to if Collins or Simmons fail.
The secondary is a mishmash. FS Budda Baker is one of the better safeties in football and CB Byron Murphy Jr. had a good year. SS Jalen Thompson put up some big tackle numbers but that will happen when the guys in front of you aren’t very good (I’m talking about the entire front seven). They ended up playing Marco Wilson a lot last year and he looked like the fourth-round pick he was. He was fine at times but he had his struggles. They need another CB so bad they are even taking a flyer on former 2018 Green Bay second round flame out Josh Jackson. He’s bounced around a bit since the Packers gave up on him but here he is. He hasn’t been good but if there is anywhere he could stick on the roster, this might be his only chance.
Seattle Seahawks
As much as I don’t trust Kingsbury, Murray, the o-line or the defense in Arizona, I can’t see them finishing behind a team with Geno Smith (or Drew Lock) at QB. If you’re a Seattle Seahawks fan and you’re just taking the season off from watching football, no one will blame you. One reason the NFL can’t make “tanking” illegal is that it’s hard to prove a team is trying to lose. Having Geno Smith, Drew Lock, a Jacob Eason as your three QBs might be the closest anyone has ever come to having actual proof a team is trying to lose. Geno Smith hasn’t regularly started games since 2014, Drew Lock never should have regularly started games and Eason never will regularly start games. It’s really unfortunate because WRs DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett are actually a really good pair of receivers to waste. They also added TE Noah Fant in the Russell Wilson trade, which gives them three really good pass catchers, although that’s all they have, the rest of the WR/TE group is pretty rough. (And don’t try to sell me on TE Will Dissly)
The running game took a hit when Chris Carson was forced to retire due to his neck injury but the Seahawks knew it was coming and planned accordingly. They re-signed Rashad Penny after he had a great five out of the last six games last season. They only gave him a one-year deal but that’s because his first three seasons in the league were awful. They also drafted Kenneth Walker III in round two of the draft. He’s really talented and he’s the future at the position. The team also finally addressed the OT position in draft after putting veteran band-aids on the spot for far too long. LT Charles Cross is an immediate starter and while Jake Curhan is currently penciled in at RT, it’s only a matter of time before Abraham Lucas takes that job. The team signed C Austin Blythe and it seems he’ll battle Kyle Fuller for the starting job there. Gabe Jackson and Damien Lewis return at the guard spots, they are solid players.
It’s going to be a transition year for the Seahawks defense. Well, let’s be honest, it’s probably going to take more than one year. This is probably going to have more of a 3-4 look to it although it’s a little bit of a hybrid look in the front seven. The personnel fits the 3-4 better for sure. DE Shelby Harris came over in the Russell Wilson trade and he’s been on a three-man line for a while in Denver. Al Woods and Poona Ford can be DTs but they fit the three-man front just fine. None of these guys are particularly great pass rushers but Harris can get there on occasion.
The LBs are missing Bobby Wagner after a decade of elite play from him. He has moved on to the Rams and the team is hoping Jordyn Brooks can step into his role on the field and as a leader. Cody Barton is the most likely ILB with Brooks. Darrell Taylor was always an OLB/DE tweener and now he can play OLB with newly signed Uchenna Nwosu on the other side. They also drafted Boye Mafe from Minnesota and he gives them a guy they hope can be a double-digit sack guy since none of these other guys have proven to do that. One guy to watch out for, rookie fifth-round pick Tyreke Smith, he could have some pass rushing chops.
The secondary features SS Jamal Adams. They are paying him a ton of money and they paid a hefty price to trade for him two years ago. They have to get more out of him even if he isn’t great as a coverage guy. He is an effective blitzer when used correctly. FS Quandre Diggs is an underrated guy who covers for a lot of mistakes on this defense. The CB spot is in far worse shape. Tre Brown and Sidney Jones might be penciled in as starters if they weren’t hurt and that’s not a great thing. Artie Burns is still somehow earning a paycheck in the NFL too. Justin Coleman is supposed to be a good nickel corner but you have to have guys playing well on the outside for that to matter. I think they should give rookies Coby Bryant and Tariq Woolen a really long look.
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