NFC West Week 14 Preview

Week 13 was not kind to the NFC West, as the four teams combined for a 1-3 record.

Author:
Nicolas Newman
Updated:
Dec 10, 2020 3:00 PM EST

NFC West Week 14 Schedule

Thursday, December 10th - 5:20PM: Patriots @ Rams (FOX)
Sunday, December 13th - 10AM: Cardinals @ Giants (FOX)
Sunday, December 13th - 1:05PM: Jets @ Seahawks (CBS)
Sunday, December 14th - 1:25PM: Football Team @ 49ers *in AZ* (FOX)

Current NFC West Standings

1st- Rams: 8-4

2nd- Seahawks: 8-4

3rd- Cardinals: 6-6

4th- 49ers: 5-7

General Week 13 recap and Week 14 overlook:

Week 13 was not kind to the NFC West, as the four teams combined for a 1-3 record.

Surprising, because three of the teams were favored to win, per Vegas Insider. The only team not favored to win were the Cardinals, who lost their divisional game against the Rams.

The Seahawks were on the wrong side of the most surprising upset of the weekend, as they lost to the Colt-McCoy-led Giants. I for one did not see that coming. I truly felt like the Seahawks would win by at least three or four scores. My apologies, Colt, for not giving you a chance.

Lastly, the 49ers lost to the Bills in their debut as the home team inside State Farm Stadium. The loss drops the team’s record to 5-7, and while that’s far from ideal, they’re still mathematically alive in the playoff hunt.

Looking ahead to Week 14, there are four very important games to be played. With the Rams and Seahawks having the same record, neither could afford a slip up in their favorable matchups against the Patriots and Jets. Meanwhile, the Cardinals could potentially drop their fourth straight game. And the 49ers, well, they don’t have any more losses to spare if they want to make a run at the playoffs.

Let's take a closer look at each matchup:

Washington Football Team - San Francisco 49ers (5-7)

2020 Team Stats (Football Team on left side - 49ers on right side)

Points Scored Per Game: 22.0 - 23.8
Passing Yards Per Game: 245.0 - 273.8
Rushing Yards Per Game: 101.5 - 109.8
Points Allowed Per Game: 21.7 - 24.0
Passing Yards Allowed Per Game: 224.7 - 230.8
Rushing Yards Allowed Per Game: 107.1 - 106.4

Storyline: Can Alex Smith beat his former team for the first time, ever?

Alex Smith should, in my opinion, be the unanimous Comeback Player of the Year. Since taking over as Washington’s starting quarterback, Smith has led the team to a 3-1 record and has them in the mix of winning the NFC East. Mind you, Washington was 2-6 when Smith took over.

Smith and the Washington Football Team are coming off a huge upset against the once undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers, and look to win their fourth consecutive game.

This will be Smith’s second start going up against the team who drafted him. His first start came back in 2014, when he was starting quarterback for the Chiefs. Smith and the Chiefs lost that game 22-17.

Can Smith get his first career win against his former team? He certainly could. But I’m not expecting it to be easy.

Both the Football Team and the 49ers have tremendous defenses. In total defense, the Football Team ranks 4th and the 49ers 6th. The 49ers defense did not look good against the Bills, but luckily for them they will not be facing a mobile quarterback.

That is exactly why I believe Washington’s offense will struggle. Last week against the Steelers, who have one of the best defenses in the league, Washington scored 23 points. However, they only scored three points in the first half.

Offensively for the 49ers, I expect them to struggle against Washington’s vicious defensive-front. Last year when these two teams played, the 49ers won 9-0. But the game was extremely low scoring, because the conditions were extremely wet. I see another low scoring affair, but because both of these defenses are really good, not because of weather conditions.

I like the 49ers in this matchup, because of Robert Saleh’s track record against immobile quarterbacks. Plus, the team is desperate for a win.

As long as Nick Mullens has a full arsenal of weapons at his disposal, the 49ers should have enough firepower to win this game.

Score Prediction: Football Team 16 - 49ers 20

New England Patriots (6-6) @ Los Angeles Rams (8-4)

2020 Team Stats (Giants on left side - Seahawks on right side)

Points Scored Per Game: 22.8 - 25.1
Passing Yards Per Game: 202.5 - 281.0
Rushing Yards Per Game: 150.9 - 124.2
Points Allowed Per Game: 21.3 - 20.3
Passing Yards Allowed Per Game: 235.8 - 219.3
Rushing Yards Allowed Per Game: 118.8 - 93.1

Storyline: What version of the Patriots will come out to play Thursday Night?

The Patriots have been a very difficult team to gauge this season. They got off to a solid start, starting 2-1. Then they were one of the first teams highly impacted by COVID-19, and had to start Brian Hoyer against the Chiefs. That started a four game losing streak, where the team fell to 2-5. Now, they’ve won four out of their past five games, and are two games back of the final playoff spot in the AFC.

What Patriots team will come out to play Thursday night against the Bills? I’m not quite sure. But I wouldn’t expect to see a team that’s clearly battling fatigue. The Patriots have stayed out on the West Coast, since traveling to Los Angeles last week for their first game in the area, against the Chargers. They should be ready to go for this one.

After losing to the 49ers two weeks ago, the Rams bounced back nicely and picked up a very important win against the Cardinals. Goff played much better against the Cardinals than he did against the 49ers, and if he plays like that on Thursday the Rams should have no problem taking down the Patriots.

This is a must win game for the Rams, because if they don’t walk away victorious, they’ll likely lose their division lead. I like how they matchup against the Patriots, and I see them winning this game in a close one.

Score prediction: Patriots 17 - Rams 24

Arizona Cardinals (6-6) @ New York Giants (5-7)

2020 Team Stats (Cardinals on left side - Giants on right side)

Points Scored Per Game: 22.7 - 19.3
Passing Yards Per Game: 248.9 - 207.4
Rushing Yards Per Game: 150.6 - 119.8
Points Allowed Per Game: 24.7 - 22.1
Passing Yards Allowed Per Game: 254.4 - 263.5
Rushing Yards Allowed Per Game: 123.0 - 96.7

Storyline: Can the Cardinals avoid the panic alarms from sounding?

The Cardinals are in a bit of a free-fall. After starting the season 6-3, they’ve lost three straight games. If the “Hail Murray” doesn’t happen, they’d be 5-7.

They are currently trailing the Vikings for the final playoff spot, and they can’t afford to lose this game against the Giants. Especially with two more division games to be played, against the 49ers and Rams.

Why are the Cardinals sputtering down the stretch? It could be because Murray has been dealing with a lingering shoulder injury. Though, on Wednesday, during a press conference, Murray said his shoulder is fine.

Speaking of injured quarterbacks, the Giants may be without Daniel Jones for the second consecutive week. However, his chances of playing are significantly higher than they were last week at this time. In fact, ESPN New York has tweeted that Jones is on track to play against the Cardinals.

If that’s the case, I like the Giants to win this game. Their defense has been very good this season, and they’re riding high after limiting the Seahawks to 12 points. If McCoy is starting this game, I don’t see the Giants winning. I said this exact same thing last week, and the exact opposite occurred. But I feel like McCoy’s win was a total fluke. They caught the Seahawks on an off day.

Assuming that Jones plays, I like the Giants to win, and for the Cardinals free-fall to continue.

Score Prediction: Arizona Cardinals 20 - Giants 24

New York Jets (0-12) @ Seattle Seahawks (8-4)

2020 Team Stats (Giants on left side - Seahawks on right side)

Points Scored Per Game: 15.0 - 29.4
Passing Yards Per Game: 191.0 - 289.9
Rushing Yards Per Game: 106.6 - 116.7
Points Allowed Per Game: 29.4 - 26.8
Passing Yards Allowed Per Game: 300.1 - 323.1
Rushing Yards Allowed Per Game: 107.8 - 97.7

Storyline: The Jets can’t be the Seahawks… right?

The Jets are a mess. They had their first win of the season in the bag, until they blew it in inexcusable fashion. They blew the game against the Raiders so badly, that a conspiracy theory started that the Jets tried to lose, so that they could continue to hold the first overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. If Gregg Williams weren’t fired the very next day, it’d be a very plausible conspiracy.

Last week, I gave the Giants no chance of beating the Seahawks. That was a mistake, because even though they were without their starting quarterback, they still had something to play for. The Jets have nothing to play for, other than pride. But, it would be a huge mistake to completely count the Jets out of this game, because one- the Seahawks aren’t that good and two- they have a history of always playing down to their opponent. Plus, professional athletes don’t tank, especially in the NFL. Too much is at stake every single snap. I expect the Jets’ players to be out for redemption, after embarrassing themselves last week.

Although they’ll be out for redemption, the Seahawks are the better team. I don’t see them losing two straight games to teams that the 49ers annihilated. I like the Seahawks by multiple scores.

Score Prediction: Jets 17 - Seahawks 31

SI Writer Predictions: