Predictions: Who Will Win NFC West?

Last year‘s NFC West division race came down to the end of the season between the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams, with the latter winning it all.

The Arizona Cardinals were in the thick of the hunt for a chunk of the season, too, while the San Francisco 49ers had a rare down season.

In 2025, I am expecting all four teams to take steps forward and each have a legitimate candidacy for the division title.

The Rams didn’t lose much this offseason after winning it a year ago. The Seahawks face the most change of any team here, but I’m not ready to write them off.

The Cardinals are primed for a breakout season after surprising everyone a year ago, and the 49ers should rebound just fine with continued great coaching.

It will all contribute to one of the most exciting division races in the NFL this season; I’m not exaggerating when I claim I could see the race ending in almost every possible scenario.

But if I were to take my stab at predicting how it all will end, it would look a bit like this:

First Place: Los Angeles Rams

The Rams were one of the biggest winners of the offseason across the league. They managed to keep Matthew Stafford around for at least one more season and upgraded his pass catchers with the addition of Davante Adams.

Both Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams return as well to round out a terrific trio of options for Stafford.

Defensively, LA is in a league of their own when looking at their front seven. Reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year Jared Verse will lead a unit featuring Braden Fiske, Kobie Turner, and Byron Young.

Those four combined for 28 sacks a year ago with Fiske leading the group with 8.5.

I truly believe all four of these guys could post 10+ sacks as a group. I’m not as big a fan of the back end of the defense, but the safety duo of Kamren Kinchens and Kamren Curl does have my attention.

As long as Sean McVay continues coaching this team, they will be a perennial playoff contender, but the continuity of an already great team from last year makes them the heavy favorites to repeat division champs, at least for me.

Second Place: San Francisco 49ers

I will be honest and say that I am perhaps too high on the 49ers, but I very much disagree with anyone who believes they are suddenly out of contention for championships. This offseason proved that won’t be the case as they made sure to lock up the face of their franchise and get younger and cheaper at positions where they lost key players.

Say what you want of Brock Purdy, but he’s still an above average quarterback who can win your team football games. He’s coming off of a bad year no matter how you slice it, but that offense as a whole wasn’t healthy last year, including him. George Kittle remains a constant, but a healthy Brandon Aiyuk is still a WR1 and a healthy Christian McCaffrey is the same at running back.

Consider me intrigued with Ricky Pearsall, too. If the offensive line figures it out, the offense will rebound.

The biggest question marks on this team revolve around a reloading defense. Several players were lost on that side of the football, and Dre Greenlaw‘s departure feels unfillable. But the Niners made some terrific moves to rebuild the defense, including first round pick Mykel Williams. But the return of defensive coordinator Robert Saleh will determine how great this unit will be.

Kyle Shanahan will apparently never stop being underestimated despite two trips to the Super Bowl. I was tempted to take San Francisco as my division winners, but I’m sticking with Los Angeles until further notice.

Third Place: Arizona Cardinals

Arizona Cardinals QB Kyler Murra — Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) during organized team practice at the Arizona Cardinals training center in Tempe on May 28, 2025. | Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Cardinals are set to surprise the league once again in 2025, but this time they will get the job done and secure a winning record.

Unfortunately for them, the NFC West is a strong division and even a winning record won’t guarantee a finish as its runner-up, let alone its champion. But a Cardinals team that was in the thick of the hunt for the division maintain much of last year‘s team and managed to make some significant upgrades.

The offense remains unchanged, right, wrong, or indifferent. It’s a big year for Kyler Murray and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing and their futures with the franchise.

Trey McBride has surged atop the ranks of his position and is one of the best tight ends in football. James Conner is a consistent and ultra reliable runner, and Marvin Harrison Jr. could be in for an improved sophomore campaign after a good, not great rookie season.

Unlike the offensive side of the ball, the defense received major upgrades across the board and should take a meddling unit that admittedly overachieved last year to new heights. The defensive front was significantly improved with new pass rushers and defensive lineman, including Josh Sweat, Walter Nolen, and Calais Campbell.

An already good secondary added Will Johnson in the second round of this year‘s draft, and he could be a better DROY candidate than first rounder Nolen.

With Jonathan Gannon in year three as the team's head coach, things are looking up for the Cardinals. Don’t be surprised to see Arizona put together a more complete season than a year ago with a winnable schedule. Nine-wins is in attainable.

Fourth Place: Seattle Seahawks

Tariq Woole — Dec 8, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Seattle Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen (27) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

No one is completely sure what to do with the Seahawks, who are facing significant changes to the team, especially on offense. However, this team showed a lot of fight in its first year of the post-Pete Carroll era, and I believe the replacements the team made from its personnel changes could keep them afloat in a worst-case scenario.

The biggest questions on this team are on offense after both Geno Smith and DK Metcalf were traded.

Sam Darnold was signed as Smith’s replacement, and as long as he continues to play at a high-level after a breakout year with Minnesota then I am confident he can get the job done. Cooper Kupp was added to help a wide receiver room moving on from Metcalf and longtime contributor Tyler Lockett. I have medium expectations there, but I’m all in on Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

Hopefully, the offensive line can step up and its run game plays to its potential.

Defensively, I believe the Seahawks can maintain above-average play at worst. I do believe they will take a step forward this year provided health is on their side. Leonard Williams is a drastically overlooked defender who anchors a front seven featuring Jarran Reed, Byron Murphy II, Ernest Jones, Boye Mafe, and free agent addition DeMarcus Lawrence. The secondary is as good as it gets with a deadly cornerback combo of Riq Woolen and Devon Witherspoon.

A safety duo of Coby Bryant and Julian Love is also nothing to overlook.

Second year head coach and defensive mastermind Mike Macdonald will be under the microscope to see how he manages a young and exciting team that is going through big-time changes. I could see Seattle finishing the year with a winning record or even second in the division, but I have them last for now. I still like this team — just not as much as its rivals.