09-05-2021 Ravens Preview - Flipbook - Page 47
NFL2021
NFC West
LOS ANGELES
RAMS (11-7)
Projected 2021 win
total: 10.5
LAST YEAR: Coach Sean McVay got his
fourth consecutive winning season and
the third playoff berth of his impressive
tenure, although a humiliating home loss
to the winless Jets in December likely
cost the Rams a shot at the division
title in their first year in SoFi Stadium.
Los Angeles recovered to beat Seattle
in the wild-card round before losing to
Green Bay. Los Angeles had the best
defense in the NFL behind All-Pros
Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey, with
rookie coordinator Brandon Staley’s
unit frequently carrying the Rams while
the inconsistent offense led by McVay
and quarterback Jared Goff spent a
second straight season in the middle
of the league rankings. McVay and
general manager Les Snead then made
another major franchise overhaul early
after Staley’s departure to lead the Los
Angeles Chargers, allowing four defensive
starters to leave along with several key
assistants.
IMPORTANT ADDITIONS: QB Matthew
Stafford, defensive coordinator Raheem
Morris, WR DeSean Jackson.
IMPORTANT LOSSES: Staley, Goff,
pass game coordinator Shane Waldron,
run game coordinator Aaron Kromer, DL
Michael Brockers, S John Johnson, CB Troy
Hill, C Austin Blythe, LB Samson Ebukam,
DL Morgan Fox, LS Jake McQuaide.
NOTES: After a career spent grinding
for little reward or recognition in Detroit,
Stafford is clearly motivated to take his
career to the next level. He’ll be trusted
to get the most from McVay’s schemes,
which are likely to get more inventive and
more intricate with a veteran passer at
the helm.
EXPECTATIONS: If McVay and Snead are
right about their high-risk quarterback
move, the Rams have realistic hopes of
playing in a home Super Bowl in Inglewood.
Super-Bowl-or-bust is simplistic when
thinking about these Rams, who should
have most of their core together at its
peak for a few more seasons.
SEATTLE
SEAHAWKS
(12-5)
Projected 2021 win
total: 10
LAST YEAR: Thanks to a big start of the
season from QB Russell Wilson and WR
DK Metcalf and a defense that improved
throughout the year, the Seahawks won
the NFC West for the first time since 2016.
But the offensive outburst early sputtered
during the second half of the schedule and
collapsed in the first round of the playoffs,
losing at home to division rival Los
Angeles. It led to an offseason of change
and some turmoil within the franchise
that on the surface seems to have settled.
IMPORTANT ADDITIONS: G Gabe
Jackson, DE Kerry Hyder Jr., WR D’Wayne
Eskridge, DT Al Woods, CB Tre Brown, TE
Gerald Everett, CB Ahkello Witherspoon,
offensive coordinator Shane Waldron.
IMPORTANT LOSSES: CB Shaquill
Griffin, WR David Moore, RB Carlos Hyde,
TE Greg Olsen, LB K.J. Wright, DT Jarran
Reed, CB Quinton Dunbar, offensive
coordinator Brian Schottenheimer.
NOTES: Hello, Jamal Adams. The
contract situation with the Seahawks’
do-everything safety will be in the
spotlight and whether a long-term deal
can be reached that keeps Adams tied
to Seattle beyond this season. Most
position battles seem settled, but there
is the question whether Darrell Taylor can
be a starting strongside linebacker or will
the Seahawks need to make a late pitch
to Wright about a possible return for an
11th season?
EXPECTATIONS: This feels like a massive
training camp and season for the future
of the Seahawks under Pete Carroll.
There was enough discontent between
Wilson and the team that a divorce
nearly happened, and next offseason a
separation becomes even more possible
because of salary cap structure. If
Waldron’s offense fits for Wilson and the
Seahawks win, the relationship is likely
to continue. If there is a plateau or even
regression, then changes could be in
order. That could mean likely a massive
overhaul for the oldest coach in the
league who has a burning desire to get
back to another championship game.
SAN FRANCISCO
49ERS (6-10)
Projected 2021 win
total: 10
LAST YEAR: The Niners’ bid to return to
the Super Bowl was derailed early last
season when stars Nick Bosa, George
Kittle and Jimmy Garoppolo all went
down with injuries in the first two weeks.
That trend extended throughout the
season as no team was hurt more by
injuries in 2020 than San Francisco. The
thinned-out roster won only six games as
coach Kyle Shanahan had his third losing
season in four years at the helm.
IMPORTANT ADDITIONS: QB Trey
Lance, C Alex Mack, DE Samson Ebukam,
DT Maurice Hurst, S Tony Jefferson, RB
Trey Sermon, G Aaron Banks.
IMPORTANT LOSSES: DC Robert Saleh,
CB Richard Sherman, DE Kerry Hyder,
CB Ahkello Witherspoon, WR Kendrick
Bourne, TE Jordan Reed, QB Nick Mullens.
NOTES: After losing S Tarvarius Moore,
RB Jeff Wilson Jr., and OL Justin Skule to
significant injuries in the offseason, the
biggest need for the Niners is staying
healthy. Settling on a starter at RG
between Banks and Daniel Brunskill
and seeing how close DE Dee Ford is to
returning from a back injury also will be
important. New DC DeMeco Ryans needs
to find some reliable pass rushers and
cornerbacks to keep the defense playing
at a high level.
EXPECTATIONS: Just a year removed
from a run that took them to the Super
Bowl, the 49ers believe that health is the
only factor that could prevent them from
returning to contender status in the NFC.
The offensive line should be improved
and whoever plays QB will have plenty of
options in the passing game with Kittle
and WRs Deebo Samuel and Brandon
Aiyuk. The defense has to show it can play
at as high a level under Ryans as under
Saleh. A second straight healthy season
from injury-prone CB Jason Verrett will be
key in that regard.
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One of league’s toughest
divisions will remain a
top-to-bottom scrum, with
veteran Stafford now under
center for McVay and the Rams.
ARIZONA
CARDINALS (8-8)
Projected 2021 win
total: 8
LAST YEAR: The Cardinals looked like
one of the NFL’s rising franchises for
most of the season but lost five of their
final seven games to fall just short of the
playoffs. The connection between QB
Kyler Murray and WR DeAndre Hopkins
was one of the league’s most productive
until fading in the final weeks. The
defense improved dramatically under
second-year coordinator Vance Joseph.
IMPORTANT ADDITIONS: DL J.J Watt,
WR A.J. Green, K Matt Prater, CB Malcolm
Butler, C Rodney Hudson, G Brian Winters,
QB Colt McCoy, S Shawn Williams, LB
Zaven Collins (1st-round draft pick), WR
Rondale Moore (2nd-round draft pick),
RB James Conner.
IMPORTANT LOSSES: CB Patrick
Peterson, LB Haason Reddick, RB Kenyan
Drake, WR Trent Sherfield, TE Dan Arnold,
DL Angelo Blackson, C Mason Cole.
NOTES: Arizona added several veterans
with the hope of squeezing out a few more
productive seasons from players such as
Watt, Green and Butler. With that in mind,
keeping them healthy is paramount. The
Cardinals hope Murray can take another
step forward as a third-year quarterback.
Coach Kliff Kingsbury has already made it
clear that Collins, the team’s first-round
draft pick, will be expected to contribute
at linebacker from Day 1. Another
intriguing player is linebacker Dennis
Gardeck, the special teams ace who was
a revelation on defense last season by
contributing seven sacks.
EXPECTATIONS: Kingsbury enters his
third season under a considerable amount
of pressure to make the playoffs. The
Cardinals are running out of time to take
advantage of Murray’s relatively cheap
rookie contract, and signaled they’re in
win-now mode during free agency by
adding Watt, Green and Butler while
trading for Hudson. Though they made a
handful of splashy moves in the offseason,
it remains to be seen if the Cardinals can
break through in a tough NFC West that
includes the 49ers, Seahawks and Rams.
— Associated Press