Is the NFC West the toughest division in the NFL so far? It could be because not only are there three obvious playoff contenders all over .500, but the combined records of all four teams outside of the division is 8-4
and three of those four losses came against teams that are 4-1.
Not only that, NFC West teams have two of the top quarterbacks in the NFL this year, a third shocking name in the mix, and the two most productive and successful receivers in the league in 2025. These are dangerous offenses led by talented head coaches and even the Cardinals are one super fluky play away from being 3-2.
But it’s not all good. Here are the winners and losers of the NFC West division through five weeks. Can the Rams pull out a division title this year with so many strong contenders in their way?
Winners
Fans of the long ball
The top-two leaders in passing yards per game are in the NFC West:
- Mac Jones is averaging 301.7 yards per game
- Matthew Stafford is averaging 300.6 yards per game
Hard to believe that Jones would be in this conversation but the 49ers are 3-0 when he starts and he’s been as close to perfect as anyone could have expected Mac Jones to be in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. He’s been better than Brock Purdy this year, but Purdy’s 293 passing yards per game ranks third. Obviously the 49ers plan to throw it a lot this season, especially with how bad they’ve been at running the ball.
Then another quarterback emerges:
- Sam Darnold leads the NFL with 9.3 yards per attempt
The Seahawks quarterback is top-3 in completion percentage and passer rating and is right alongside Stafford in that early-season MVP conversation. The only NFC West quarterback bringing up the rear is Kyler Murray, who is 29th in yards per pass and 27th in yards per game.
Turning it over to the receivers, Puka Nacua leads the NFL with 52 catches and 588 yards, but Jaxon Smith-Njigba is second in yards at 534. Smith-Njigba is the first player in Seattle’s franchise history to have 500 yards in the team’s first five games of a season. That’s not all in the NFC West though, as Christian McCaffrey is sixth with 387 receiving yards. Teammate Ricky Pearsall is averaging 81.8 yards per game, which ranks fifth, while Davante Adams is 17th in 71.4.
Arizona’s Marvin Harrison, Jr. is 26th at 61.2 yards per game but coming on of late with 98 yards in Week 5.
If you like passing the ball, the NFC West is second to none.
Head coaches
In his ninth season, Shanahan has helped get the 49ers to a 4-1 start despite an absurd number of injuries to key starters, including George Kittle, Purdy, Nick Bosa, Brandon Aiyuk, Jauan Jennings, and Pearsall. In arguably the toughest division in the NFL, Shanahan is in first place.
But Sean McVay is perhaps just two bad plays away from the Rams being 5-0 and in first place in his ninth season with L.A..
And Seattle’s Mike Macdonald is 3-2 and similarly just two potential plays away from the Seahawks being 5-0 and in first place; Bosa forced a Darnold fumble on the last play of Week 1 with Seattle in the red zone and a Darnold pass bounced off of a helmet for an interception in the Seahawks’ Week 5 loss to the Bucs. Both of Seattle’s losses came to 4-1 teams.
Same story for the Rams: They’ve only lost to the 4-1 Eagles and 4-1 Rams.
The Cardinals are 2-3 and have lost three straight games, but they’ve lost those games by a combined total of 5 points. The first two of those losses were to San Francisco and Seattle, while they had one of the most unbelievable losses we’ve ever seen in Week 5 to the previously winless Titans.
That’s why Jonathan Gannon, despite a 14-25 record, seems to be sitting anywhere but a hot seat. Maybe that will change in a month, but the Cardinals have shown stead improvement in his three seasons at the helm and it seems unlikely that Arizona could do any better.
We thought that the AFC West was stacked at head coach with Harbaugh, Payton, Reid, and Carroll. No. It’s the NFC West. Younger and so far this season a lot better.
Run Defense
You’ll see the other half of this category when we get to NFC West “losers” but the division is the best in the NFL at stopping the run so far. How much of that is attributed these offenses struggling to run the ball themselves?
The Seahawks are second in the NFL by allowing 3.3 yards per carry (Browns are first at 3.0) and the Rams are rihgt behind Seattle at 3.5. The Cardinals are seventh by allowing 3.9 yards per carry and the 49ers are 12th at 4.1.
That’s four of the top-12 teams in yards per carry allowed.
Over at Next Gen Stats:
- The Seahawks are first at -0.62 rushing yards over expectation allowed
- The Rams are fifth at -0.21
- The Cardinals are sixth at -0.15
- The 49ers are 12th at +0.11
All four of these teams get the job done against the run, led by L.A. and Seattle. That’s largely thanks to their big bodies up front, including Poona Ford, Tyler Davis, and Kobie Turner on the Rams, Byron Murphy and Leonard Williams on the Seahawks, Dante Stills and Calais Campbell on the Cardinals, and Bryce Huff, Jordan Elliott on the 49ers.
That continues with some of the NFC West linebackers leading the way like Fred Warner, Nate Landman, Ernest Jones, and Mack Wilson. The NFC West linebackers are among the best all-around in the league when it comes to defending the run.
Losers
Injury report
You could find injuries in any division, but these are the most notable ones in the NFC West:
- Bosa, 49ers (season)
- Purdy, 49ers
- George Kittle, 49ers
- Ahkello Witherspoon, Rams
- Walter Nolen, Cardinals (PUP)
- James Conner, Cardinals (season)
- Julian Love, Seahawks
- Devon Witherspoon, Seahawks
- Riq Woolen, Seahawks
Nobody has gotten hit harder than San Francisco and none of these teams have been healthier than the Rams. Seattle’s secondary was recently decimated with injuries and they gave up almost a perfect game to Baker Mayfield in Week 5. The fact that the Niners are 4-1 and could be getting reinforcements is a testament to the potential road blocks ahead for the rest of the division because San Francisco has already beaten all three rivals once this season.
Fans of easy division titles
Sorry but this won’t be the AFC North or even the AFC West or NFC South. If the Rams win the NFC West, it will this year, it will be one of McVay’s greatest regular season accomplishments.
Not only are the 49ers 4-1 and 3-0 in the division, but the Rams and Seahawks are 3-2 and the Cardinals are 2-3 with two of those losses being within the division. That means that the combined record of the four NFC West teams outside of the NFC West is:
- Cardinals outside the NFC West are 2-1
- Seahawks outside of the NFC West are 2-1
- 49ers outside of the NFC West are 1-1
- Rams outside of the NFC West are 3-1
Combined record of 8-4.
Take it a step further and of those four losses:
- The Rams lost to the 4-1 Eagles
- The 49ers lost to the 4-1 Jaguars
- The Seahawks lost to the 4-1 Bucs
- The Cardinals lost to the 1-4 Titans
Of those four outside-of-division losses, three came to teams that are 4-1. Even within the division, the Rams, Seahawks, and Cardinals all lost to the 4-1 49ers. So of the division’s eight combined losses, six have been to teams that are 4-1.
This will be anything but easy.
Top Tier Offensive Lines / run games
This could be one area where the NFC West struggles, especially in the run game.
Here are the NFC West rushing offense ranks:
- Cardinals: 4.8 YPC (10th), 591 yards (11th)
- Rams: 4.6 YPC (12th), 561 yards (19th)
- Seahawks: 4.0 YPC (22nd), 565 yards (17th)
- 49ers: 3.1 YPC (31st), 426 yards (27th)
In fact, San Francisco is the only team in the NFL to not score a rushing touchdown this year. Every other team has at least two, including teams that had a bye in Week 5.
This may be attributed to some very mediocre offensive lines in the NFC West so far.
The Rams have well known struggles on the interior with Coleman Shelton at center and injuries impacting the left guard and right tackle spots. Even without those injuries, are Steve Avila and Rob Havenstein irreplaceable? L.A.’s best offensive lineman is Kevin Dotson, but they should be focused on OL early in next year’s draft. No clear upgrades are on the way this season.
The 49ers aren’t getting the typical season at left tackle from Trent Williams and given his age maybe that will never happen again. SF’s left guard Ben Bartch is on IR and most of their starters are middle of the road.
The Cardinals are very happy with left tackle Paris Johnson, a former top-10 pick, but really the defining play of their run game this season will be this:
The Seahawks entered the season ranked as a bottom-3 offensive line by many outlets due to their long reputation as such, although they’ve gotten a huge upgrade at left guard after drafting Grey Zabel in the first round. Seattle’s offensive line is better than usual, especially in pass protection, but the offense continues to struggle running the ball: The Seahawks are 31st in EPA per rush. (Estimated Points AddeD).
The 49ers are 28th and essentially tied with Seattle in this category, while the Rams are 23rd and the Cardinals are 20th.
If you like the ground game, the NFC West is not the division for you.
Who are your NFC West winners and losers? Shoot down to the comments to read and share your own.
