Recently, some of the NFL's top reporters have said some pretty gruesome things about the NFC West. In the past 3 years, the divisions in the NFL who have had the honor of playing the four teams that make up the division have been dominant, leading to bloated records. In 2008, the AFC North went 11-5 against them. 2009 saw the AFC South (which was relatively weak in '09) compile a 12-4 record. Worse still, this past season, the NFC South put up gaudy numbers in route to going 13-3 against the weakened western footballers. So the reports have been correct. They have been a doormat in the recent past.
That, however, will start to change sooner than most think. The San Francisco 49ers got rid of "Hothead" Coach Mike Singletary and brought in Jim Harbaugh to bring some much needed order to the squad. That may make a positive difference just as quickly as last year's hiring of Pete Carroll by the Seattle Seahawks did, when after going 5-11 in '09, they won the division (albeit with a 7-9 losing record), then won a playoff game at home against the New Orleans Saints, shocking the entire football world. They became the first team in NFL history to win a playoff game with a losing record.
The St. Louis Rams drafted their quarterback of right now and the future with Sam Bradford, and don't be messing around thinking this kid will be a dud. Not gonna happen. Dude's amazing. When they get themselves a solid receiving core and a decent line, we're looking at the second coming of "The Greatest Show On Turf". Lastly, the Arizona Cardinals have done something about that underachieving defense, hiring Ray Horton as their Defensive Coordinator. Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt is friends with Horton from their days in Pittsburgh, and yes, he may have gotten possibly his third choice to fill the position, but the hire is still a big deal. Horton brings young energy with him, reportedly hiring Deshea Townsend as an assistant to help with the Defensive Backs, though Townsend hasn't yet filed official retirement papers with the NFL.
As metal gods Judas Priest once said, "You've got another thing coming". That is, if you're the NFC East, anyway. They have the misfortune of playing the NFC West next season. The success I speak of remains to be seen, of course, seeing how there may not be a full season of football next year. The CBA talks have resumed under federal supervision, though, and NFL Commish Roger Goodell is more optimistic now than he was a week ago, when meetings were cancelled due to heated arguments over certain issues being discussed. God willing, if everything works out between both sides and there is football in the late summer, we're looking at a different NFC West monster. Yeah, I said it. They're gonna be monsters next year.
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