My Preseason Predictions:
1.Seattle Seahawks (12-4)
2.San Francisco 49ers (11-5)
3.Arizona Cardinals (8-8)
4.St. Louis Rams (7-9)
Actual Standings:
1.Seattle Seahawks (13-3)
2.San Francisco 49ers (12-4)
3.Arizona Cardinals (10-6)
4.St. Louis Rams (7-9)
Arizona Cardinals: I was on the Arizona Cardinals bandwagon before the season started, but even with me having faith in them to be a sleeper team, I'm still mildly surprised they managed to pick up 10 wins this season. New coach Bruce Arians worked the same magic he did with the Colts in 2012 and got the most out of an offense that was labeled as "below average". It wasn't always pretty, but they got the job done most of the time. New starting quarterback Carson Palmer completely embodied that not always pretty but still effective motto with his 4,274 yard, 24 TD and 22 INT campaign this season. Even with all the INT's, Palmer provided a stability and playmaking ability at quarterback that the Cardinals did not have in 2012. Palmer's presence at quarterback allowed young wideout Michael Floyd to really break out of his shell and showcase his true ability. Floyd actually outshined his mentor Larry Fitzgerald in at least 1 aspect this season, leading the team in receiving yards (1,041) thanks to his emergence as a dangerous deep-threat. While Floyd showed dramatic improvement, Fitzgerald is still the top dog in the Cardinals receiving corps. He may not have registered 1,000 yards on the year, but he was still productive with 82 receptions and 10 TD's on the year as well as commanding the attention from opposing defense to give Floyd some opportunities downfield. Even with Arians and Palmer vastly improving the offense this season, the Cardinals are still very much a defensive-based team. The rushing defense was consistently dominant thanks to a disruptive front 7 and went on to lead the league in stopping the run. While the usual suspects such as cornerback Patrick Peterson, defensive end Calais Campbell and inside linebacker Daryl Washington delivered once again, it was the new additions that really made this Cardinals defense pop. John Abraham made the Falcons look silly for cutting him by picking up a team-high 11.5 sacks, Jerraud Powers gave the Cardinals a very active and effective nickel corner and rookie safety Tyrann Mathieu silenced all his critics with his play and could potentially end up being one of the best two-way safeties in the league within the next few years. While a majority of the Cardinals new pickups were impressive, nobody shined brighter than Karlos Dansby. Dansby was castoff from the Dolphins after a subpar 2012 and went onto to have a rebirth with The Cardinals this season. Dansby reestablished himself as an inside linebacker that can do everything leading the team in tackles, interceptions and racking up 6.5 sacks. Dansby's ridiculous numbers earned him the first All-Pro bid of his entire career and rightfully so, he was one of the most dynamic linebackers in the league in 2013. The Cardinals have the misfortune of playing in the toughest division in the NFL, but with their stiff defense and an offense that has a fair amount of firepower and top-notch coaching from Arians, this is a team that should be deep in the playoff mix for years to come.
St. Louis Rams: Despite all the preseason hype that labeled them as the sleeper team of 2013, The Rams finished year stuck in the bowels of mediocrity. Quarterback Sam Bradford got knocked out for the year in Week 7, leaving them with a mostly one-dimensional offense for the second half of the year due to the mediocrity of backup quarterback Kellen Clemens. Though Clemens leading the charge for the second half wasn't great, the real reason the Rams failed to make a big splash was the disappointing play of their two big offseason pickups tight end Jared Cook and wide receiver Tavon Austin. Aside from Cook's monster game in the opener against the Cardinals, he was just as mediocre as he was with the Titans. It's only a year into the deal, but Cook doesn't even seem to close to being worth the 5 year/$35 million contract the Rams handed him. Austin made a few big plays, but was certainly not the game-changing, franchise wideout the Rams traded up to get in the draft. Just about the only bright spot on the Rams offense this season was rookie running back Zac Stacey. Stacey is a bruising back that is reminiscent of guys like Alfred Morris and Marshawn Lynch. The Rams have definitely found their new franchise back in Stacey, which is especially satisfying that it came immediately after longtime starter Steven Jackson signed with the Falcons prior to the start of this season. Even with their secondary not performing up to capacity, the Rams defense was the still the backbone of their team. Defensive end Robert Quinn is a serious Defensive Player of the Year candidate with 19 sacks and 7 forced fumbles. Quinn is one of the most underrated players in the league as he continues to put up huge numbers without much recognition. Aside from the dominance of Quinn, defensive end Chris Long and inside linebacker James Laurnitis put up rock-solid numbers once again. Adding to the talented veteran playmakers on defense was rookie outside linebacker Alec Ogletree, who proved to be worth the risk of his high draft pick as he ended up being one of the most impressive defensive players from the 2013 draft class. The Rams certainly have a decent number of talented players and with a veteran coach like Jeff Fisher in charge anything is possible, but they're are going to need play more consistent football and get some more offensive weapons if they want to actually live up to their expectations as a sleeper success.
San Francisco 49ers: Unlike their opponents in the Super Bowl last year, the 49ers did not suffer a hangover in 2013. The 49ers were pretty much the same team that made it to the big dance last year: Frank Gore pounded the ball and set the tone for the offense, the defense was elite against both the run and the pass and Jim Harbaugh looked like a lunatic yelling at the refs and running up-and-down the sidelines. About the only difference for the 2013 49ers was that it was Anquan Boldin anchoring the receiving corps and not Michael Crabtree (who was out for a majority of the season and was easily the biggest reason Colin Kaepernick's numbers fell this year.) Boldin's size and hands made the absence of Kaeperenick's favorite target Crabtree about as painless as it could possibly be. The defense somehow got even better with rookie safety Eric Reid replacing enforcer Dashon Goldson (who signed with the Buccaneers in free agency) with an even scarier and more well-rounded presence while Glenn Dorsey was a brick wall in the middle of the line delivering a big improvement over Issac Sopaga and Ricky-Jean Francois from a year ago. Of course, the big dogs in Aldon Smith, Justin Smith, Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman (who was the most impressive of the bunch in 2013) were all their usual dominant selves making this unit about as scary as you can possibly can get in the NFL. The only flaw of the 49ers was exposed in Crabtree's absence and that is the pure lack of depth at wide receiver. Aside from Boldin, Crabtree and tight end Vernon Davis, there is no one that is even serviceable on this roster. If they could pull in a legit number 3 wideout this offseason, this team would significantly increase its odds of getting a Lombardi Trophy. The 49ers were dominant in 2013 and will be dominant as long as the core of their roster is in tact and performing at a high level.
Seattle Seahawks: Just like their rivals down in San Francisco, the Seattle Seahawks were at the top of the NFL's heap winning games in the same fashion as they've in the past by running the ball well and relying on their strong defense to force turnovers and raise hell on opposing offenses. The defense was the number 1 overall unit in the league in 2013 and managed to somehow be even scarier than last year. The Legion of Boom was their typical dominant selves with Walter Thrumond and Byron Maxwell stepping in for the injured/suspended Brandon Browner for much of the season, Bobby Wagner led the linebacking corps with another strong season and the addition of pass-rushing specialist Cliff Avril and edge-rusher/run-stuffer Michael Bennett fixed any issues this unit had of getting to the quarterback in the past. While Marshawn Lynch continues to be the prime offensive force for the Seahawks, the impact of quarterback Russell Wilson can not be overlooked. Wilson looked even sharper and confident in his second year in the league. He didn't always have huge numbers because of the run game and the defense, but when you needed him to make a play, he came through almost every time. Wilson has the work ethic, arm strength and dual-threat ability to become an absolute superstar in this league within the next few seasons. The Seahawks also don't get nearly enough credit for the talent of their receiving corps. Golden Tate and Doug Baldwin are pretty reliable and have big-play ability while Jermaine Kearse can burn you on deep routes. They don't have the big-name flash of many other great teams, but these guys more than get the job done and that's really all you need to succeed in this league. The Seahawks are a young and deep team that should only get better with experience and the return of explosive playmaker Percy Harvin going into next season.
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