5 reasons the Rams may be an NFC West favorite

The Seattle Seahawks have been the ‘King of the Hill’ for a real long time. While Arizona has made a run or two, the only real player in the NFC West has been Pete Carroll & Co.

And they still may be.

But after this past Sunday, and even looking back at the 2016 season, much of what you see beyond the ugliest uniforms next to those in Jacksonville, is a team getting closer to the middle than ascending to the top.

The loss in Green Bay, 17-9, showed that the Seahawks have a great defense, a really good quarterback, and an offensive line that is the kind of debilitating liability that will cause this team to stumble before all may be said and done.

As currently constructed, Seattle will struggle to win the NFC West if for no other reason than their primary challenger, Los Angeles, is a regular thorny and contentious matchup. The Seahawks only saving grace the last few seasons was instability at the quarterback position and Jeff Fisher on the sidelines.

That’s not an issue any longer for the Rams.

Jared Goff need only be better than Case Keenum was last season, which he looks to be already.

The equalizer in this argument is that both defenses are stellar. It’s also a reasonable conclusion that both teams could beat up on the division, leaving only what they do head-to-head to decide a title in the West.

Under that scenario, a lock that it’s the Seahawks is not as sure a bet as it has been in years past.