The NFC West was the best division in the NFL by a mile in the 2025 regular season, as three of the four teams won at least 12 games and the Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl. While Seattle lost Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker, the division, somehow, has gotten even tougher on day one of free agency.
Do the Seahawks still run the West, though? Let's dive in.
4. Arizona Cardinals
There's no question that the Arizona Cardinals are the worst team in this division. Sure, there are some talented players on offense, like Trey McBride, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Paris Johnson Jr., and the defense still has Budda Baker leading the way, but the Cardinals don't have a quarterback as they're expected to release Kyler Murray, and they're led by an unproven first-year head coach in Mike LaFleur.
The bottom line is this Cardinals team went 3-14 last season, and while Tyler Allgeier is a good player, he isn't moving the needle much. This was one of the worst offensive and defensive teams in 2025, and barring a shock, that'll be the case once again. Moving on from Murray was justified, and who knows, maybe LaFleur is the right guy, but winning many games without a quarterback and with an unproven head coach, especially in this division, just doesn't feel possible.
3. San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a tough team to read. On one hand, they won 12 games despite an absurd list of injuries this past season, and just signed Mike Evans. On the other hand, can I really expect them to be healthy enough to win 12 games again? Plus, while Evans is a great player, he's a 32-year-old who just played in eight games in 2025. How many more will he play in 2026?
There's no denying that this can be a great addition. If Evans is healthy, he gives the Niners a legitimate WR1 to lean on. Still, I question whether he can be healthy enough to play 15+ games, I question whether this offense can truly hum if Trent Williams has played his last snap in San Francisco, and I question whether Evans' new teammates can play on the field consistently.
Even if everything goes right in San Francisco and their stars are fully healthy, third place could also be their reality just because of the division they're in. A playoff spot is still possible, if not likely, but it's hard to envision the Niners finishing any higher.
2. Seattle Seahawks
There's a good chance I'm being entirely disrespectful to a Seattle Seahawks team that literally just won the Super Bowl. Even without Kenneth Walker, they still have Zach Charbonnet, who is more than capable of being their lead back. Even without Coby Bryant, the Seahawks' defense is still incredibly hard to beat.
With all of that being said, Seattle has lost two important free agents without making a move, and the margin of error was already razor-thin in 2025. Seattle split the regular-season series against the Los Angeles Rams, and the combined score in those games was 58-57 Rams. When these teams faced off in the NFC Championship Game, the Seahawks won 31-27, and it really could've gone either way.
These were, in my opinion, the two best teams in the league this past season, and while the Seahawks have gotten slightly worse, the Rams have gotten better. There's your difference.
1. Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams not only traded for Trent McDuffie, one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL, but they re-signed both Kam Curl and Tyler Higbee, and they've signed Jaylen Watson, McDuffie's Kansas City Chiefs teammate. The Rams brought back two of their most important free agents and have greatly improved their secondary, which was a weakness at times in 2025.
The Rams led the league, averaging 30.5 points per game in the regular season. Their offense was just as dynamic in the postseason, particularly against Seattle. They're running back that offense with a defense that's greatly improved. There's a good chance GM Les Sneed isn't done yet, either.
This division could go in a multitude of directions, but it felt as if the Rams were just one break from getting past Seattle and hoisting the Lombardi Trophy themselves. Since their offseason has gotten off to a much better start, they should be looked at as the favorites to win this uber-competitive division right now.
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