By: Andy Davies

The NFC West was considered the elite division in the NFL as little as a year ago but things have progressed since, despite having the current Super Bowl champions in the Los Angeles Rams. 

Russell Wilson is no longer in the division, and no one quite knows who will be the QB1 in San Francisco. 

But who is the divisions best quarterback? Here are the rankings of the NFC West quarterbacks from best to worst.

Matthew Stafford (Los Angeles Rams)

What better place to start than with the QB1 of the Super Bowl Champions. Whilst Stafford was not the reason the Rams won Super Bowl 56 over the Cincinnati Bengals, with 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions, he was certainly the final piece of the jigsaw as the Rams hoisted the Lombardi Trophy for the first time since the 1999 season. 

The Rams were always contenders, making it all the way to Super Bowl 53, but there was always something missing at the quarterback position. Jared Goff did well but even he would admit he was probably not good enough to take the Rams where they needed.

He was traded to the Detroit Lions in exchange for Stafford and the rest is history. Stafford had reached the postseason on three previous occasions, but each time came up short at the first attempt. His lack of playoff wins was a factor pointed out by sceptics when he arrived but when the Rams made the playoffs, Stafford showed why the team gave up so much to get him. In four games, he threw for 1,188 yards, 9 touchdowns and 3 interceptions as well as having a 70% completion percentage (98 from 140).

In the regular season, Stafford also impressed. Only Tom Brady (43) threw for more touchdown passes (41), with Stafford throwing for the third-most passing yards (4,886). 

Stafford is clearly the choice for the number one spot on this list and it will take a lot for the other players in this list to catch him up.

Kyler Murray (Arizona Cardinals)

Murray’s future is unclear, with his fifth option exercised but no longer-term deal in place at time of writing. 

The 2019 first overall pick has shown signs of his potential but is yet to fulfil this on a consistent basis. In three seasons, he has thrown for 11,480 yards, 70 touchdowns and 34 interceptions, whilst also recording  1,786 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. 

A trend of Murray’s career so far is starting off the season well but tailing off down the stretch. He will need a big year to convince the Cardinals front office that he is the player moving forward. Either way, he still remains second on this list.

Jimmy Garoppolo (San Francisco 49ers)

When the 49ers lost to the Rams in the NFC Championship game back in January, it was seen by many to be the end of Jimmy G in San Francisco. However, he is still on the team.

Having missed OTA’s due to rehab on his shoulder,  he has yet to be traded. Say what you want about Jimmy G, but he wins games. Simple as that. Whilst he has never been the reason for the 49ers winning games, he is a very serviceable quarterback. With uncertainty over Lance after reports of the organisation being underwhelmed, Garoppolo is the right guy to be under centre for the 49ers in week one. 

Drew Lock/Geno Smith (Seattle Seahawks)

Whether it is Lock or Smith, there is no way they aren’t at the bottom of this list. Lock has a great start to life in the NFL, when he started for the Denver Broncos towards the end of the 2019 season, his 2020 and 2021 campaigns flattered to deceive. Meanwhile, Smith has been a backup for most of his career. Neither of these quarterbacks, whoever starts against the Broncos in week one, are likely to inspire confidence from fans or the Seattle coaching staff. 

The post Ranking the NFC West Quarterbacks right now appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Andy Davies

The San Francisco 49ers are one of the most successful franchises in NFL history. Only the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers (both 6) have more Super Bowl wins than the 49ers (5). The 49ers’ five Super Bowls all came between the years of 1981 and 1994. They have lost two since, in the 2012 and 2019 seasons. The quarterbacks that led the 49ers to the Lombardi Trophy were Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Steve Young. Three of those five wins saw Montana as the starter and Young as the backup.

Young is seen by many as the best backup quarterback in history, considering the gold jacket that he earned despite many years as the backup to Montana. He would win a Super Bowl as the starter after the franchise moved on from Montana. Ever since Young decided to hang up his cleats, the 49ers have struggled to find his replacement. Have they found the guy in Trey Lance?

Perhaps, but here is why the quarterback situation involving Lance and current starter Jimmy Garoppolo could prevent the 49ers from winning the NFC West during the 2021 season.

Struggles Since Young

Jeff Garcia was the man to come in for Young. During his five seasons in the Bay, he threw for 113 touchdowns and 56 interceptions as well as 16,408 passing yards. He had a 35-36 record as a starter for the 49ers in the regular season and a 1-2 record in the postseason, meaning he never hit the heights of his predecessor.

Alex Smith was the number one overall pick in 2005, shattering Aaron Rodgers’ dreams. However, he was a good quarterback, not a great quarterback. Colin Kaepernick replaced Smith and took the 49ers to the Super Bowl. They ended up losing to the Baltimore Ravens in a game often called the ”˜Blackout Bowl’. Kaepernick failed to live up to the standards he set that season.

He would be kicked out of the league for taking the knee in a protest against police brutality in 2016. He has not played a snap in the NFL since. Jimmy Garoppolo was traded from the Patriots to the 49ers midway through the 2017 season. He gave hope to the organization after winning all five of the games he started in 2017. The fanbase had hope going into the 2018 season.

Many non-49ers fans had San Francisco down as their dark horse for the season. A season-ending injury to Garoppolo in Week 3 saw the starting role shared between Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard. However, the 49ers finished 4-12 as they went into 2019 with the second overall pick. Nick Bosa was selected and transformed the defense of San Francisco and Jimmy G had the best season of his career. He threw for 3,978 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Despite these stats, Garoppolo saw his production limited in the NFC Championship game as the coaching staff decided to use more of their running game. This led to many questions leading to the Super Bowl. The 49ers threw away a ten-point lead in the fourth quarter as they would end up losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 54.

Garoppolo was criticized heavily for an overthrown pass to Emmanuel Sanders that would have given San Francisco back the lead. His 2020 season saw a mixture of poor form and injury. During the 2021 offseason, the 49ers traded up with the Miami Dolphins to gain the number three overall pick. They took Lance with the pick, showcasing their intentions to eventually move off from Garoppolo. There is now talk of whether San Francisco and head coach Kyle Shanahan will start Lance in week one. The other scenarios discussed are either Lance coming in mid-season or sitting out the whole campaign as the backup to Garoppolo. The uncertainty will have a significant impact on the 49ers’ season.

The Strength of the NFC West

This is a problem that will affect all four teams in the best division in the NFL. There is a chance that all four teams can make the playoffs. Los Angeles has an exciting new quarterback in 2009 first overall pick Matthew Stafford. Both the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals have quarterbacks in Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray that they would never dream of trading away. Meanwhile, the 49ers’ starting quarterback is largely unpopular by fans, due to a mixture of the overthrown pass in the Super Bowl, his poor 2020 campaign and his injury record.

San Francisco has the least trusted quarterback in the division. With the position being one of the most crucial in all sports, it does not bode well for a team when there is uncertainty in the position. Garoppolo may be benched at some point during the season for Lance. However, the 49ers would be putting a rookie that will still be learning the system into the toughest division in the NFL.

Learning From Mahomes, Jackson, Tua and Burrow

If San Francisco are to help Lance succeed, they will need to take some lessons from recent draft classes. Patrick Mahomes, widely seen as the best quarterback in the league, spent all but one game of his 2017 rookie season as a backup to Alex Smith. The Chiefs then traded Smith the following offseason and Mahomes has never looked back. In his first three full seasons as a starter in the NFL, he has reached two Super Bowls, winning one. He has also been crowned MVP and Super Bowl MVP and reached three successive AFC Championship games. All three have been at home. On the flip side, 2020 first overall pick Joe Burrow started in week one of his rookie year. He wouldn’t last the season, only playing ten games before injury curtailed his first NFL campaign. He was impressive before his injury but there are no guarantees he will be the same player when he returns.

Lamar Jackson was a backup to Joe Flacco during his 2018 rookie year but won the starting role midseason. He has since gone on to win an MVP award and is the future of the franchise. Meanwhile, the Miami Dolphins brought Tua Tagovailoa in mid-season but he struggled in his rookie season. He is seen to already be on the hot seat, with many feeling the Dolphins rushed him in. These examples all show there are reasons for the 49ers to be hasty when it comes to choosing when to bring Lance into the starting role.

Lance Or Garoppolo In 2021?

The 49ers will have to decide soon who their starter will be in 2021. Considering Lance has only played one full season (2019), he is likely to start the season as the backup. He only threw for a combined total of 31 passing attempts, two touchdowns and 1 interception across the 2018 and 2020 seasons, albeit the latter campaign being disrupted by the pandemic. He is likely to be a work in progress but his 28 touchdowns and 0 interceptions in 2019 mean that he is one for the future.

Garoppolo will likely start in week one but it was clear from the NFC Championship game that Shanahan doesn’t completely trust him.

Jimmy G is a capable quarterback but his health is a concern. Expect Garoppolo to remain as the starter provided the 49ers are winning games but for Lance to come in should Garoppolo either be injured or start the season poorly.

Should this happen, this will be the end of Garoppolo’s time in San Francisco. Depending on timing, he will then be traded either before the deadline or in the 2022 offseason.

Can The 49ers Returning Players Avoid A Repeat Of 2020?

This is key if the 49ers are to challenge for both the NFC West and the NFC. After earning the number one seed and reaching Super Bowl 54 during the 2019 campaign, San Francisco finished 6-10 in 2020 and bottom of the division. A ”˜Super Bowl Hangover’ played its part but the main cause of such a decline was down to a colossal amount of injuries the team suffered. Along with the aforementioned Garoppolo, the 49ers also saw Bosa, Dee Ford, George Kittle, Raheem Mostert, Deebo Samuel and Solomon Thomas miss large chunks of the 2020 season due to injury.

San Francisco had 33 players reported questionable and there were 186 occasions when the 49ers reported a player on injured reserve. They had the second-most injuries of any team in the NFL over the past twenty years. Should all these players come back, then this 49ers roster will be one of the best in the league. This will make life much easier for whoever the San Francisco starting quarterback is.

However, from the strength of the division to the uncertainty at quarterback, San Francisco will find it tough to win the NFC West.

The post Why the QB situation may prevent the 49ers from winning the NFC West appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

The Arizona Cardinals have slowly crafted a roster full of talented young players. With hope that they will build on a somewhat lackluster 2020 season that saw them finish with an 8-8 record, expectations will be high for this team heading into the  2021 season. 

In order to improve, it will take contributions from players, specifically players that haven’t broken out into stardom. Here are two players on the Cardinals that are primed for a breakout season on either offense or defense. 

Offense: James Conner, Running Back

James Conner is new to the running back room in Arizona. He signed with the Cardinals this offseason and will hope to jumpstart his career.
After a very strong 2018 season with the Pittsburgh Steelers where Conner reached the end zone 13 times and had nearly 1,500 yards from scrimmage, Conner has yet to return to this form. 

In 2019, Conner appeared in just 10 games but still found his way into the end zone seven times. The difference in 2019 was that Conner proved to be a receiving threat. Three of Conner’s touchdowns came through the air. Even with the scoring success, Conner produced only 715 yards from scrimmage. 

Conner’s 2020 season was not much better than his 2019. In the 13 games that he played in, he reached the end zone just six times. There were positives that came along with it though. He still proved to be a threat in the receiving game and while not scoring through the air, he was still able to haul in 35 receptions. 

Conner has just turned 26 years old and choosing to sign with the Cardinals could be just what his career needs. 

Conner will be joining an offense that is led by quarterback Kyler Murray and star wide receiver Deandre Hopkins. Conner will also share a backfield with running back Chase Edmonds. 

Edmonds had his ups and downs over the course of last season and there is no guarantee that there will be a clear lead back in Arizona. Conner and Edmonds could see a clean split in carries and whichever running back that has the hot hand will be who is fed the ball more. 

While there will be pressure for Conner to perform, the Cardinals strong offense will allow for him to ease his way onto the field. 

Kyler being the QB1 will also allow for Conner to play with a quarterback that is also heavily involved in the run game. This will allow for more opportunities for Conner. If all goes to plan, he will be back to his 2018 form and be a real playmaker for this young Cardinals Team. 

Defense: Byron Murphy Jr, Cornerback

Byron Murphy Jr. will be entering his third season with the Cardinals. The former second-round pick has spent almost all of his time in Arizona as the team’s primary slot cornerback. He has made his presence felt at the slot corner spot and has become one of the best in the league at that spot. 

There is potential that Murphy could spend more time playing outside corner. With the addition of veteran corner Malcolm Butler and the departure of Patrick Peterson, the number two corner spot is up for grabs. Could Murphy potentially earn that spot? It could be his for the taking. 

In year two, Murphy looked much different than he did during his rookie season. When comparing the two seasons, stat wise Murphy may look as if he regressed. During his rookie season, Murphy racked up 78 tackles and one interception. In comparison, Murphy had just 51 tackles and zero interceptions in his second year. 

But, this doesn’t tell the whole story. Murphy’s on field performance changed dramatically during year two. In comparison to year one, where Murphy allowed nine touchdowns in pass coverage. Murphy allowed just two during his second season. He also added two sacks and, overall, was much more of a threat to both the pass game and run game. 

All signs point to Murphy taking a much bigger role in year three. He should be prepared for this role as he has made great strides to being a top-tier corner in the NFL. 

The post Arizona Cardinals that could break out in 2021 appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Reese Nasser

The Arizona Cardinals, after having an excellent start to their 2020 season, finished in the middle of the pack with an 8-8 record. This mediocrity seems to still be following the Cardinals into the off-season.

The team is projected to finish near the bottom of the division. Albeit a very strong NFC West, a bottom finish will not be good for Arizona. The fans and players alike are expecting a big leap from last season to this one. But this doesn’t change how the team is being viewed. The expectations are low from people on the outside. Here are a few reasons why the Cardinals are still being underlooked. 

Coaching

Apparent offensive guru Kliff Kingsbury has been the Cardinals coach for two seasons now. He has a record of 13-18-1 during his time in the NFL. Kinsgusry was considered one of the greatest offensive minds in football when he was hired by the Cardinals. 

During his time as the head coach of Texas Tech, his passing attack was a thing of beauty. The unit finished in the top-10 in scoring every year that Kingsbury was there.But this offensive display has not necessarily translated to the NFL. The offense at times has looked mediocre at best, even with some of the most talented players in the NFL. Over the last two seasons, the Cardinals have ranked 16th and 13th in point differential. The offensive unit is much different than what many envisioned when Kingsbury was brought in. His mediocre playcalling and apparent misuse of wide receiver Deandre Hopkins has led to some believe that this offensive experiment may not work. 

As Kingsbury has underperformed during his time in the NFL, the Cardinals will continue to be underlooked. Expect to see a much improved unit this upcoming season. Kingsbury knows that the pressure may be on him and this team will have something to prove come the start of the season. 

Kyler Murray

The play of Kyler Murray up to this point has been soemwaht inderappeactied which may lead to the Cardinals being underlooked up to this point. Much like the rest of the offense, Murray started out the season extremely well. Up until the halfway point, many believed that Murray was a potential MVP candidate. 

After week eight, the offense began to slow down. Murray, who had been a touchdown machine, stopped producing scores. By the end of week eight, Murray had already racked up 24 touchdowns. Throughout the rest of the season, he only added 12 more scores. Murray had only three games where he had three touchdowns or more, unlike the first eight games where he had six games of three or more touchdowns. 

The offensive issues derailed the season and much like a coach takes a majority of the blame, so does the quarterback. Murray is the face of this team and his play dictates how this unit will be viewed. His highs are the teams high and his lows and the team’s lows. As Kyler steps into year three, if he wants this team to be regarded as a top contender, he will have to prove the league wrong and ball out for a full 16 games. An MVP, and possibly a super bowl, will be in his future if he can lead this unit like he can. 

Strength of Divison

The Cardinals play in what is arguably the toughest division in football. The NFC West consists of the Seattle Seahawks, the San Francisco 49ers, and the Los Angeles Rams. 

All three of the teams that the Cardinals share a division with saw themselves get better since the season ended. 

Arizona has also improved but it arguably has not been like the other teams in the division. The Rams have a new QB1 in Matthew Stafford. The 49ers selected North Dakota State qb Trey Lance with the third overall pick and he is destined to be the future of the franchise. And the Seahawks have Russell Wilson. They will always be in the conversation for the best team in the division based solely on the fact that Wilson is their guy.

This Cardinals team has added strong role players such as wide receiver A.J. Green and running back James Conner. They had a strong draft that added starters on both offense and defense. But it still doesn’t seem to be enough. They have a 30/1 odds of winning the super bowl, the third best out of the teams just in their division and the same as the Seattle Seahawks. Expectations are not absurdly high for this and mediocrity is basically expected by many people around the NFL. This notion will only change if Arizona can make it change. This team as a whole must be better in order to get the attention that they deserve. And if all goes right, they will be better. 

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