NFC West offseason update and odds: Rams bid to stay at the top

Fast forward 12 months though and things are a little different with the AFC West now becoming the league’s biggest arms race.

We are entering a period of change in the NFC West with Seattle about to begin life after Russell Wilson, and San Francisco about to find out if Trey Lance is indeed the real deal.

The world champion Rams should be good again, but will the departure of Von Miller remove the X factor that helped on that terrific post-season run in 2021?

OddsCritic looks at the offseason moves made by all four teams, and analyses the questions they all need to answer heading into the 2022 regular season.

NFC West in 2021: L.A. stays the course

The Rams started and finished hot in 2021 to clinch the NFC West title from a floundering Arizona Cardinals roster.

The Cards had looked sensational en route to a 7-0 start, but they faded badly down the stretch to finish on 11-6 before an embarrassing playoff loss to Los Angeles in SoFi Stadium.

San Francisco overcame significant adversity with injuries to get into the playoffs, it fell short of the biggest game on earth due to their inability to find a QB who can make the plays when needed. Jimmy G couldn’t do it, and Lance will get his shot in 2022.

It was always going to be a pivotal season in the Pacific Northwest with Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks appearing to be at a crossroads. When Wilson suffered a nasty finger injury the wheels really came off and a parting of the ways seemed inevitable.

Eventually the Denver Broncos gave up the house to trade for Wilson, allowing Pete Carroll and Seattle to begin a full overhaul of their roster.

Final Standings

1. 12-5 Los Angeles Rams
2. 11-6 Arizona Cardinals
3. 10-7 San Francisco 49ers
4. 7-10 Seattle Seahawks

Los Angeles Rams in 2022

• NFC East Odds: 6/5
• Super Bowl Odds: 10/1
• Head Coach: Sean McVay

The Rams have been in ‘win now’ mode for a number of years now, and it appears their championship window might still be open.

The mid-season trade for Von Miller and the acquisition of Odell Beckham Jr added further star power to an already gaudy roster and helped Sean McVay get the team over the Super Bowl hump with that thrilling win over Cincinnati in February.

Miller will not be back in 2022 after signing a huge deal to jump ship for this year’s Super Bowl favourite Buffalo, while Beckham remains a free agent after that devastating knee injury.

The Rams though are not shy about adding real firepower, and they restocked their locker full of stars by signing former Bears WR Allen Robinson in free agency along with superstar Seattle LB Bobby Wagner.

The theory is QB Matthew Stafford will be even better in Year 2 in the McVay offense, so you have to believe the Rams will be strong offensively once again. Team MVP Cooper Kupp meanwhile heads into the season with an $80million contract extension signed and sealed.

Los Angeles endured a big loss with the retirement of LT Andrew Whitworth after a stellar career, but the Rams hope Joe Noteboom will bring about a seamless transition. They certainly paid him like that with a new deal worth $40million over three years.

Another offensive lineman who won’t be a Ram in 2022 is guard Austin Corbett, who signed with Carolina. Punter Johnny Hekker meanwhile is another key piece heading for Charlotte this year.

The Rams endured significant defensive losses too, with nose tackle tackle Sebastian Joseph-Day signing with the crosstown Chargers and CB Darious Williams moving to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Los Angeles, as ever due to its strategy of trading for star veterans, had little ammo to play with in the 2022 Draft, with no picks until 104 overall.

It was no surprise that their offensive line came in for immediate attention with the selection of Winsconsin guard Logan Bruss, while South Carolina State CB Decobie Durant should add depth to the secondary.

Summary: The Rams should still be really really good in 2022, but whether they’ll be good enough to back up any lofty pre-season predictions is another matter.

There will be Super Bowl expectations again in Tinseltown, but we cannot help feeling this roster is a little weaker than it was 12 months ago.

We loved the signing of Robinson and the offense should rock again, but Wagner - fine player though he is - is unlikely to be the game-wrecking force that Von provided in January and February. That could be the biggest difference of all.

San Francisco 49ers in 2022

• NFC East Odds: 15/8
• Super Bowl Odds: 12/1
• Head Coach: Kyle Shanahan

For a team which is built to win without an elite QB, 2022 for San Francisco looks very much about the QB.

With Jimmy Garoppolo surely on the trade block at some stage, it’s time for the Niners to find out if all that draft capital they invested in Trey Lance was worthwhile.

The Niners experienced a couple of big losses in the trenches with OG Laken Tomlinson bolting for the Jets in free agency, while DT D.J. Jones signed a nice deal with the Denver Broncos.

Mostly San Francisco shopped at the cheaper end of the market in free agency, but it did spend big to bring in former Kansas City Chiefs CB Charvarius Ward for $40.5million over three years.

The move up to get Lance in 2021 meant the 49ers did not have a first-round pick in the 2022 Draft, so their first selection was a bid to find a running mate for the fearsome Nick Bosa. It came in the shape of USC DE Drake Jackson in Round 2.

LSU RB Tyrion Davis-Price arrived in Round 3 to add more power to that Niners ground game, while SMU WR Danny Gray was brought in to provide a deep-ball threat for Lance.

Summary: It’s pretty grim sometimes that when you consider how many players make up an NFL roster, it still almost always comes back to the QB.

The game manager quality that Garoppolo brought to this offense is clearly no longer enough and the Niners admitted as much when they spent big to get Lance.

Assuming Deebo Samuel is content again, and the ground game hums once more, it is all about Lance. If he is as advertised coming out of school, we should have a Super Bowl contender.

Arizona Cardinals in 2022

• NFC East Odds: 7/2
• Super Bowl Odds: 33/1
• Head Coach: Kliff Kingsbury

There were a ton of eyebrows raised when Arizona HC Kliff Kingsbury received a massive contract extension in March 2022.

Yes Kliff appears to have presided over gradual improvement during his spell in the desert, but look under the hood and there are significant questions to be answered.

The Cards once again fell apart late in the season after a terrific start, and the playoff loss in Los Angeles was downright embarrassing.

Throw in the tense relationship between the team and QB Kyler Murray and not everything is rosy.

Kingsbury is here to stay for a good while yet it seems, and his biggest offseason move was to bring in an old friend to help Kyler air it out. Giving up a first-round pick on draft day to acquire Baltimore WR Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown was another move which surprised - steep price when there were plenty of more pressing needs.

The price to re-sign RB James Conner ($21million over 3 years) appears pretty rich too, but at least the Cards did not try to hang onto WR Christian Kirk after that crazy $72million offer over 4 years from Jacksonville.

The big loss on defense for Arizona was pass rusher Chandler Jones signing with the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency, while DT Jordan Phillips (Bills) and LB Jordan Hicks (Vikings) also jumped ship.

On offense the Cardinals ensured the receiving depth remains good with WR A.J. Green and TE Zach Ertz both on board again.

With its first-round pick already used on ‘Hollywood’, the Cards surprisingly went TE in Round 2 of the draft. Surprising with Ertz and Maxx Williams already under contract. But anyway, in comes Colorado State’s Trey McBride.

We liked the third-round selections of defensive ends Cameron Thomas (San Diego State) and Myjai Sanders (Cincinnati) much more - rushing the passer is now an area of huge need after the departure of Jones.

Summary: It feels like that Kingsbury extension might be something the Cardinals come to regret pretty soon. Another late-season implosion in 2022 might see Kliff on the hotseat long before his deal expires in 2027.

Clearly Arizona went out to try and load up weapons for Kyler, but they ignored some other needs to do so. He and his play caller had better be very very good this winter.

Seattle Seahawks in 2022

• NFC East Odds: 14/1
• Super Bowl Odds: 100/1
• Head Coach: Pete Carroll

The Seahawks are in full rebuild mode after that incredible run of success headlined by two Super Bowl appearances.

The Russell Wilson era is over after his trade to Denver, and the last remnant of the ‘Legion of Boom’ is gone too after LB Bobby Wagner signed with the Rams. LT Duane Brown meanwhile remains a free agent after his deal expired in 2021.

No more trying to keep up with the Rams and 49ers, Seattle is now looking to the future with a ton of draft capital acquired in the Wilson trade.

The big question of course now is what Seattle will do at QB to replace Wilson. It did acquire Drew Lock from Denver in the Wilson trade but we’d be staggered if he is the long-term answer.

Two other players came across in the Wilson trade, TE Noah Fant and DT Shelby Harris and both should improve the Seattle roster. Fant will replace Gerald Everett, who signed with the Los Angeles Chargers.

On the defensive side of the ball the Seahawks did make a significant FA acquisition with the signing of former Chargers edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu. CB D.J. Reed though departed after signing a lucrative deal with the New York Jets.

The Draft offered Seattle its opportunity to start the rebuild in earnest, and it started out strong by grabbing Mississippi State OT Charles Cross in Round 1. He should be a franchise cornerstone for years to come.

Minnesota LB Boye Mafe in Round 2 will at least go some way to filling the gap left by Wagner’s departure. Seattle used its other second-rounder on Michigan State RB Ken Walker III - Pete Carroll loves the ground game…

Seattle picked up another potential starter at OT in Round 3 in the shape of Washington State’s Abraham Lucas, while Cincinnati CB Coby Bryant in Round 4 adds important secondary depth.

Summary: Geno Smith or Drew Lock? Not the sort of choice to inspire the Seahawks faithful heading into 2022.

The question of who will be Seattle’s long-term answer at QB will now likely be addressed in the 2023 Draft. The team has the capital to trade up and get a good one.

2022 will be a fact-finding year for the Seahawks, churning the roster and putting everything in place for when they do make a move under center.

Any dreams of Super Bowls and playoffs - at least for a little while yet - are now dead in the Pacific Northwest.