Pick ‘Em Monday – NFC West

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So far this offseason, I’ve chosen division winners in 6 of the 8 divisions across the league. The Cowboys, Patriots, Panthers, Colts, Bears and Ravens have all been the predicted winners, and today I crown the seventh title, according to my predictions. The NFC West in under debate, which hosts the team of my current state of residence, the Arizona Cardinals. I’m drinking a little red Kool Aid, I must say. And no, not 49er red. On to the picks.

1. Seattle Seahawks

While the other three teams closed the gap last year, the Seahawks still boast the best OL, defense and coach in the division. St. Louis has the best QB-RB tandem, but their defense isn’t good enough to take over the division. It’s really a no-brainer, and I have a feeling it will either be the Seahawks or the Cowboys to face the Broncos in Super Bowl XLII.

2. Arizona Cardinals

I’m a Lumberjack. The Cardinals are up here in Flagstaff, AZ, hosting their Training Camp for the umpteenth year in a row at Northern Arizona University, which I will attend in my senior year in a few weeks. Not one to miss out on some football action, I’ve been blogging live from camp a few times last week, and plan on doing so again throughout this week. The Cardinals look a lot better than last year – where last year, their practice seemed extremely lackadaisical, this year they’re busting their asses under Russ Grimm and Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt. Their offense might finally fulfill the promises of the offseason, and their underrated defense, led by Pro Bowl safety Adrian Wilson, returns most of its starters. With any improvement defensively, they may just challenge the Seahawks for the division.

3. St. Louis Rams

I’m pretty high on Marc Bulger, and thought he was extremely well deserving of the big contract extension he just signed. Steven Jackson should be the #2 pick in every fantasy draft this year – I could see him outscore Ladainian Tomlinson by the end of the year. At receiver they still have Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce and they added TE Randy McMichael – this team is set to explode offensively. It’s the defense that still has me concerned, leaving this team in the background in the division. 8 wins or so, but not playoffs for the Rams.

4. San Francisco 49ers

This has to be the most overrated team in the NFL heading into this year. Even without Frank Gore‘s little injury, I wouldn’t have ranked the Niners any higher. It’s gotten so crazy, I saw one Vegas book give the 49ers the same odds to win the Super Bowl as the Broncos – a little wacky, I must say (for the record, every other report I’ve seen has the Broncos far ahead of the Niners in that respect). I’m not a fan of the 49ers because they had the worst defense in the entire league last year – until about Week 13, they were on track to have the worst scoring defense in league history. A draft pick and a few free agents in the secondary aren’t going to change that by themselves. Meanwhile, their offense won’t be as explosive with Norv Turner out of the picture. I don’t see a return to glory for San Francisco this year – maybe 5-6 wins, but no more.

Next week is the grand finale of the Pick ‘Ems, with the AFC West under debate. Until then…