Top-heavy NFC West features Super Bowl favorite Rams, defending champ Seahawks and dangerous 49ers

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch was relaying a lesson to coach Kyle Shanahan that he had learned from reading a book earlier this offseason by John Wooden.

The Hall of Fame basketball coach had written about the importance of not losing sleep thinking about the competition and instead let them lose sleep worrying about your team.

Just then the news broke that the rival Los Angeles Rams had acquired the reigning AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year,

“Funny story. I was sharing that with Kyle right about when Myles Garrett joined the Rams and he was going ‘Man, that’s really cool,'” Lynch recalled. "And as we were speaking, that came out and Kyle said, ‘You know what? (Screw) John Wooden.’ So, we understand what we’re going up against, but we’re more focused on being at our best and that, we think, is going to be pretty damn good.”

That's the case for the top three teams in what figures to be an ultra-competitive NFC West with all three ranking in the top seven in odds to win the Super Bowl, according to BetMGM, ahead of any other team in the NFC.

Seattle is coming off a Super Bowl title after knocking out both the 49ers and Rams in the playoffs. The Seahawks still have defensive whiz-kid Mike Macdonald as head coach and recently rewarded young stars Devon Witherspoon and Jaxon Smith-Njigba with market-setting contracts.

The Rams came within a play or two of both winning the division last season and beating the Seahawks in the playoffs with a star-studded roster featuring reigning MVP Matthew Stafford and star receiver Puka Nacua. That lineup only got more imposing with the additions on defense of Garrett and former All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie and the return of three-time AP Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald.

"I think this is a complete team with me here or without me here, so for me to even have the opportunity to be a part of this, to be with this team, I take nothing for granted,” Donald said.

The Niners won 12 games in the 2025 season along with a wild-card win at Philadelphia despite injuries that sidelined former All-Pros Fred Warner, Nick Bosa and George Kittle for significant time. With those three expected back and the addition of six-time Pro Bowl receiver Mike Evans, the 49ers believe they have the pieces to contend once again.

Bringing up the rear are the Arizona Cardinals, who have intriguing talent on offense under first-year coach Mike LaFleur but likely have too many holes to contend with the big boys in the division.

Super Bowl or bust for Rams?

The Rams were the overwhelming favorite to win it all once they acquired Garrett and those odds got even better when Donald made his decision to come out of retirement, giving Los Angeles two multiple time Defensive Players of the Year on their front line.

But the recent history of big preseason favorites hasn't been great. The most recent time the favorite entered the season with plus-500 odds or better to win it all like the Rams and ended up as champions, according to Pro Football Reference, came in 1994 when San Francisco won it all after adding defensive stars Deion Sanders, Ken Norton Jr. and Rickey Jackson among others.

That's why coach Sean McVay isn't viewing the season as Super Bowl title or bust.

“That’s not what I believe,” McVay added. “I’m not living that way. I’ve gotten caught up in things like that before and those are things that are way beyond our control.”

The talent is there with the additions on defense and an offense that was one of the most potent in the league last season. But injuries, bad luck or another great team such as the defending champion Seahawks could prove to be a road block.

Defending champs seek to replace key players

The Seahawks enter the season a bit overlooked thanks to the splashy moves made by the Rams. While most of the key parts are back this season, Seattle will need to replace key players such as Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III; key secondary pieces Riq Woolen and Coby Bryant; and offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.

But Sam Darnold has established himself at quarterback the past two seasons after early career struggles and Macdonald's defense should be one of the best again with stars such as Leonard Williams, Byron Murphy II, Witherspoon and Nick Emmanwori.

No NFC team has repeated as Super Bowl champions since Dallas in 1992-93 and the most recent team from the NFC to make it there in back-to-back seasons was Seattle in 2013-14.

“We want to create a new story with this upcoming season,” Smith-Njigba said. “And because it’s different, we do have different guys, we got different people in the building, so it’s going to be a unique story and a unique challenge — different from last year. So, we’re excited to take it on.”

49ers hope better health closes gap with rivals

San Francisco somehow managed to threaten the Seahawks and Rams despite being one of the most injured teams in the league last season.

They will need better health — and better play on defense — if they want to keep pace this season. When healthy, the offense should be dynamic with coach Kyle Shanahan calling plays for Brock Purdy and a star-studded supporting cast led by All-Pro Christian McCaffrey, Kittle and Evans.

“I would hope that we don’t have to show how resilient we are,” Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams said. “I hope that can show how dominant we are and how dominant we can be and how dominant we should be.”

The offense needs to be one of the best in the league since the defense isn't nearly as strong as it was during runs to the Super Bowl in 2019 and '23. Healthy seasons from Warner and Bosa would provide a big boost, but more players need to emerge as threats to pressure the quarterback and create takeaways for San Francisco to succeed.

Long-shot Cardinals rebuilding under LaFleur

Arizona has the longest odds to win the division of any team in the NFL this season thanks to the three powerhouses at the top of the NFC West and a roster with too many holes. The rebuilding job for LaFleur won't be a quick one but there are some intriguing potential building blocks on offense in All-Pro tight end Trey McBride, receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michael Wilson, left tackle Paris Johnson and rookie running back Jeremiyah Love.

But Arizona is still looking for an answer at quarterback that might not come for at least another year. Veteran Jacoby Brissett is the placeholder for now and third-round rookie Carson Beck could get a shot. With the toughest projected schedule in the NFL, the Cardinals could be in position to pick a quarterback next year.

Predicted order of finish

Rams, Seahawks, 49ers, Cardinals.

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