As we gear up for the final week of the 2026 NFL Preseason, we focus on the NFC West, which could once again produce three playoff teams. The Seahawks might have won the Super Bowl, but the Rams went all in to win a Lombardi Trophy this season. We also can't forget the San Francisco 49ers, who just won 12 games. Let's take a look at how the NFC West standings will shake out this coming season.
1. Los Angeles Rams
This seems to be everybody's favorite, not just to win the NFC West, but the Super Bowl. According to bet365, the Rams have the best odds to win Super Bowl LXI by a wide margin (+500). The next best bet is the Buffalo Bills at +1100. Los Angeles completely retooled its defense by adding two high-quality starting cornerbacks in Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson. And, of course, the Rams also traded for reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, who will bolster an already lethal pass rush that finished the 2025-26 season tied for seventh in sacks (47). Offensively, they return basically every starter from last year, with their biggest loss coming via the departure of their third wide receiver, Tutu Atwell. Along with an improved roster, the Rams will be facing a second-place schedule that includes easier matchups against the New York Giants, the Arizona Cardinals twice, and the Las Vegas Raiders. Moreover, Los Angeles should be able to take care of business against above-average teams like the Washington Commanders, Green Bay Packers, and Dallas Cowboys. The end of the season will be a tough test for the Rams, who close out the year with games against the Seahawks twice and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but they should be favored in two of those three contests. If we're being frank, Los Angeles should be expected to win almost every game it plays this season. They're going to suffer some losses, probably to the likes of the Seahawks and the 49ers, but this group has the talent and coaching needed to finish the year with the most wins in the NFC West.
2. Seattle Seahawks
I flip-flopped back and forth between putting the 49ers and the Seahawks at this spot. But I can't in good conscience go against the defending Super Bowl champions. It's already difficult to justify them not winning the division, but I expect that will be the case during the 2026-27 campaign. First of all, they lost their offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, as well as the quarterbacks coach and the run game coordinator, who joined Kubiak in Las Vegas. Having to learn a new offensive system will take some time and could lead to a few missteps early in the season. More importantly, several key starters from last year's team left in free agency, like safety Coby Bryant, edge rusher Boye Mafe, cornerback Riq Woolen and running back Kenneth Walker III. That's four starters that Seattle had to replace this off-season. We also can't forget that Jake Bobo, one of the Seahawks' top-four wideouts, will be out for the year with a torn ACL. Lastly, Seattle has a really difficult regular-season schedule, with 10 games against teams that made the 2026 Playoffs and tough matchups against squads that should be much better, including the Cowboys, Chiefs, Giants, and Commanders. The good news for those in the Pacific Northwest is that the most important players on last year's team are still there, like quarterback Sam Darnold, wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, defensive lineman Leonard Williams, edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence, linebacker Ernest Jones IV, and cornerback Devon Witherspoon. Plus, Mike Macdonald is one of the premier coaches in the NFL, which means his guys will be competitive regardless of how many players and coordinators they lost in the off-season. The Seahawks will probably regress, but they should still be a Super Bowl contender.
3. San Francisco 49ers
Not much separates the Niners, Rams, and Seahawks. Each one of those organizations has elite coaching and top-flight players at football’s most important positions. However, somebody has to be the third-place team in the NFC West, even if they end up winning 10 or 11 games. This season, it will once again be the 49ers, who are poised to make a run at the playoffs but do have some outstanding issues that we can't ignore. This marks the fourth straight year that the 49ers will have a new defensive coordinator, which will probably lead to some growing pains on that side of the ball. Thankfully, though, the roster was not hurt too much by free agency. Their biggest losses were wide receivers Kendrick Bourne and Jauan Jennings as well as defensive lineman Jordan Elliott. However, they found even better replacements in Mike Evans, Christian Kirk, and Osa Odighizuwa. Not to mention, guys like Nate Hobbs, Vederian Lowe, and Dre Greenlaw will bring veteran leadership and more skills to the offense and the defense. As is often the case with the San Francisco 49ers, this team just needs to stay healthy, and they will be in the thick of the playoff race. Unfortunately, they are already dealing with injuries to guys who will be very valuable contributors, including Mike Evans, Christian Kirk, defensive end Nick Bosa, and running back Christian McCaffrey. On the plus side, head coach Kyle Shanahan should be feeling like his normal self soon after he was involved in a frightening car accident last month. As long as Shanahan is leading the charge in the Bay Area, the Niners should be able to weather any storm, which makes them a serious threat to win the Super Bowl.
4. Arziona Cardinals
As the black sheep of the NFC West, Arizona will likely be the lone organization in the division to not just miss the playoffs but finish the year well below .500. The Cards have one of the worst top-to-bottom rosters in the NFL, if not the worst. Defensively, they are a mess. After allowing the fourth-most points per game in the league last season (28.7), this unit could be even worse this year. Arizona lost multiple key contributors on that side of the ball, including safety Jalen Thompson, defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson, linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither, and defensive tackle Calais Campbell, who was second on the team in sacks. We also might see the Cardinals move on from star pass rusher Josh Sweat, who has been at the center of trade rumors for weeks. If he is traded away, then this squad will be one of the worst pass-rushing teams in the NFL after finishing last season tied for 30th in sacks (30). The offense is notably better than the defense, but that's not saying much. Though they have elite playmakers like wideout Marvin Harrison Jr., tight end Trey McBride, and rookie running back Jeremiyah Love, the quarterback position is shotty at best. After all, things aren't going well when you plan on naming a long-time journeyman as your starting quarterback for the season. There's also the rookie head coach who, in my opinion, doesn't seem like an inspired hire. I don't want to kill Mike LaFleur before he has called a single regular-season game, but it did not feel like teams were banging down the door to hire him as their head coach. The Cards will be one of the worst groups in the NFL this year, which means they will obviously finish last in the NFC West.
