NFC West A Dogfight Among Elites in 2025

By Dan Salem

Posted on July 2, 2025

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With four proven QBs and major expectations, the NFC West will be a dogfight for the ages among a bevy of elite teams. Who is the true contender?

Prepare for the intense sports debate that only sibling rivalry can conjure. Seesaw Sports, where Dan Salem and Todd Salem throw down on the NFL, MLB, NBA and more. Only on BuzzChomp. Two brothers from New York yell, scream and debate sports.

 

Most NFL divisions are balanced, with a good team, a bad team and two competitive up and comers. Some are top heavy, while others are chock full of dump at the bottom. Where does your favorite division fall in 2025? We answer the most interesting questions about each division heading into the new season.

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Which team(s) has quarterback issues? What coach is on the hot seat, or is there more than one? Who’s the division favorite? How about a dark horse to take the title? Who will be in last place? Finally, the real question and the only one that matters. How many Super Bowl contenders does your division have? We enter the NFC West, which has too many good teams for its own good.

NFC Division Previews: NFC East, NFC North, NFC South, NFC West
AFC Division Previews: AFC East, AFC North, AFC South, AFC West

 

NFC West 2025 Preview

 

 

Quarterback Battles:

San Francisco/Los Angeles/Arizona – None
Seattle Seahawks – Not This Year (Todd) ; None (Dan)

Todd Salem: The Seahawks brought in Sam Darnold to be their starting quarterback, replacing Geno Smith. This is Darnold’s team, but the contract is such that this is really only Darnold’s team for 2025. After that, things may change. Seattle drafted Jalen Milroe in the third round. He is a high-upside, project quarterback. If he shows promise and learns the position, this could be his job as soon as 2026. If he flames out, which is entirely possible, Darnold will be the team’s only option

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Dan Salem: I’m intrigued by the situation in Arizona, because the team feels stuck in place. It’s not because of Murray, but he isn’t helping them get ahead either. Darnold in Seattle is ‘the man’ for as long as he plays well, which is pretty much how it goes everywhere. There are no true QB questions in this division until next year.

Hot Seat Coach:

Tampa Bay/Atlanta/Carolina/New Orleans – None

Todd Salem: This division is made up of two relative newbies (Mike Macdonald and Jonathan Gannon) and two of the greatest minds in the league (Sean McVay and Kyle Shanahan). No one is feeling any heat right now.

Dan Salem: Nobody is getting fired until 2026 at the earliest, but that doesn’t mean we can’t start questioning them if the 2025 season falters. If the 49ers once again are bad, do we start wondering if a coaching shakeup might help? Probably not, but the Packers did it and the Cowboys did it, so there is precedent. I can also see the Seahawks having a short hook with their new head coach, but not this year. All is clear on the sidelines in 2025.

Division Favorite:

None – Todd Salem: The West was San Francisco’s to lose for a while, and last year, they lost it. The 49ers tumbled to last place, with a 6-11 record. Los Angeles and Seattle tied for first, though at just 10-7 and with a negative (LA) or barely positive (SEA) point differential. The best differential in the division was actually held by third-place Arizona. Now, with San Fran supposedly healthy again, it is the betting favorite in most places, but it is hard to feel overly confident in that assessment.

San Francisco 49ers – Dan Salem: The top team in this division seems to swap between Los Angeles and San Francisco every other season, therefore it’s the 49ers year. I don’t actually view them as better than the Rams, but we can’t ignore history and the pattern that has emerged. I must give San Fran the edge because they are making a comeback, unlike LA who is sort of defending its division title.

 

 

Dark Horse:

Arizona Cardinals (Todd Salem) – Establishing that there isn’t a clear favorite in the division, there is still a clear tier drop-off according to odds makers. LA and SF are expected to finish first and second, in some order. Seattle and Arizona are expected to finish third and fourth, in some order. The Cardinals are building a roster from the ground up, though, and could surprise folks as soon as this season. 

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The team already has dynamite play-makers across the offense. A lot will fall on the shoulders of Marvin Harrison Jr. to make a leap this season. The team needs that number-one option but little else. Defense is where the team wasn’t NFL-caliber in recent seasons, but a lot has gone into changing that. It isn’t crazy to think there is enough here to make noise right now.

Seattle Seahawks (Dan Salem) – Nobody believes in either the Seahawks or Cardinals, but I’m not about to count out Sam Darnold and the new look Seahawks. They were on the cusp last season, so this change of face was aimed at pushing them over the proverbial top. I like their defense, as well as their offensive makeup, but it’s unlikely they will take the division title. That said, they can do it, making them the perfect dark horse.

Last Place Team:

Seattle Seahawks (Todd Salem) – The Seahawks have also had a busy offseason, but many moves have made them worse, in my opinion. Darnold is worse than Smith; Cooper Kupp, at this stage, is worse than DK Metcalf. Milroe is a lottery ticket draft pick, which is not how competitive teams should be using a third-rounder. Elijah Arroyo could be a good tight end, but the team was already good at that spot and used a second-rounder on him. On top of all that, this is a really talented division, despite the meh results last year.

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TBD (Dan Salem) – Whichever team loses its quarterback/best player first will end up in last place. It was San Francisco last season, but we don’t yet know who will befall this fate in 2025. Assuming every team remains healthy, I suppose Arizona appears the weakest on paper. They may or may not end up being the worst, however.

Number of Super Bowl Contenders:

Two – Todd Salem: I do think a healthy San Francisco and healthy Los Angeles are legitimate Super Bowl contenders. We’ve seen it from both of them recently. Now, can they stay healthy with older rosters and injury risks at key skill positions? Health is normally the deciding factor for if a team over- or underachieves. We’ll just have to wait and see.

One – Dan Salem: If everything goes right, then the Los Angeles Rams can contend for the championship in earnest. To be fair, none of these teams truly appear strong enough to win the NFC right now. San Francisco lost a lot of talent and we have yet to see if they can do enough with what’s left. Los Angeles is holding steady, but they are good, not great. An overachieving 49ers can look good in the playoffs, but aren’t a real contender in my mind. Conversely, an overachieving Rams can win this conference.

 

 

Meet our Sports Writers:

Dan Salem is Lead Editor and Co-owner of BuzzChomp. He’s an award winning Actor, Director and Producer. Visit M Square Productions for his film work, or get lost in his old-school comedy on Pillow Talk TV. You can follow him on X, TikTok and Instagram. His latest film ‘Alone’ is now on Amazon.

Todd Salem is a Staff Writer and Contributing Editor at BuzzChomp. He’s also a champion of fantasy football and fantasy baseball, dominating leagues for over two decades. Comment below on his unfiltered opinions.

NFC West Preview – This Is The End

Photo Credits: turfshowtimes.com and latimes.com; fox10phoenix.com via Getty Images

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NFC West A Dogfight Among Elites in 2025