The NFC West has a banger of a lineup this weekend, which threatens to further divide the standings or send the whole thing back into chaos.
Here’s the full four-game slate in Week 6, along with the stakes
for the standings.
10 AM – Arizona Cardinals at Indianapolis Colts
We get the rare privilege of watching the two teams who dropped a touchdown before the goal line in consecutive weeks play each other the following Sunday. This has never happened in NFL history, according to my personal recall.
The Cardinals also continue to absolutely Coug it Cardinal games away, like the cluster of buffoonery against the Tennessee Titans that got 40% of us eliminated from the Survivor League. As long as this team is led by Kyler Murray they will be steadfastly un-clutch, and I can’t imagine them beating an actually good Colts team at home. This should send Arizona to 2-4, which will put them in an unenviable position to be detailed below.
Also 10 AM – Seattle Seahawks at Jacksonville Jaguars
Massive. 3-2 versus 4-1. Two teams that are tied for first or second in their division, with scrappy defenses and young coaches. Though Jacksonville has the better record, just beat the Kansas City Chiefs, and is at home, the ESPN model gives the edge to Seattle, as do most expert predictions.
Should this game go the way of the Jaguars, they’ll most likely remain tied with Indianapolis at first in the division with a 5-1 record.
If the Seahawks pull of yet another road win, sitting at 4-2 may put them back in a first place position, detailed soon.
Yet more 10 AM – Los Angeles Rams at Baltimore Ravens
This is the battle of two teams that we don’t yet know if they’re fake or not. Gut reaction at the moment is the Rams are at least a little bit fake, as they easily could have lost three in a row after beating just the Texans and Titans. However, they’re certainly a more real football squadron than whatever you’d call the Ravens right now. Lamar Jackson will not play, and the team’s just not very good.
Again, neither (potentially) is Los Angeles, but I have significantly more faith in them on Sunday than Baltimore. Unfortunate. If that holds, the Rams would be a very dubious 4-2 with zero quality wins and a 20-ish point differential.
1:25 PM – San Francisco 49ers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Huh. The whole division is on the road this week.
What the 49ers emphatically do not have is a quarterback who’s demonstrated the 2025 volume of consistency to keep up with Sam Darnold. Who was the only reason the Seahawks kept up with Baker Mayfield for as long as they did. They’re about as injured as Seattle was last week, and man do the Bucs look strong right now, even though they won’t have Chris Godwin this week.
Let’s say the 49ers lose, which I hope for and believe is more likely. This is what the NFC could look like coming out of Week 6:
Seattle – 4-2
Los Angeles – 4-2
San Francisco – 4-2
Arizona – 2-4
That puts the Cardinals a full two games behind the entire division after spending March through August as once again the weird media dark horse selection. They wouldn’t be eliminated obviously, but it’s a whole I don’t see them overcoming with any ease.
It also would put the NFC West firmly back into the most interesting division in football conversation, even if it gives no answers as to how good these teams actually are. They’re all weird. They’re all better than bad, but weird. And that’s fun.
Let’s get weird this weekend.
