Los Angeles Rams: 4 things to watch in the NFC West for Week 4

Week 4 kicks off tonight as the Los Angeles Rams host the Minnesota Vikings at the Coliseum with LA having an opportunity to move to 4-0. So, how does the rest of the NFC West look heading into Sunday?

The Los Angeles Rams will open Week 4 with a big game against the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday Night Football. A win by LA moves them to 4-0 and the clear front runner in the NFC. A loss, while a blemish on their record, probably won’t change a lot of minds about them being a Super Bowl favorite.

As for the rest of the NFC West, it’s every bit of a grab bag as you’ll find. Frankly if not for the Rams, it would be a disaster for the division. That could change in Week 4 as the most winnable game for any of the other three teams is the Seattle Seahawks playing an 0-3 Arizona Cardinals who will start rookie Josh Rosen in place of Sam Bradford. A win for the Seahawks would move them to .500 and in a much better pace with the Rams still to come on their schedule.

The San Francisco 49ers, a team I picked to finish second behind quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, enters Week 4 clearly on the ropes and looking at a lost 2018. Meanwhile the Cardinals look to have accepted their role as a rebuild, as they turn their offense over to a rookie for what could be the balance of a long season in the desert.

The safe money, even this early in the season, is that the Rams are an easy bet to win the NFC West. Certainly that’s not breaking news, but it’s hard to imagine how they get derailed by any of the other three teams, in what is shaping up as a mediocre division at best.