NFL NFC West Week 11 Preview
Week 10 saw all games stay within the division as Arizona lost to division rivals Seattle for their fourth straight loss while the Rams lost in overtime to the San Francisco 49ers, 23-20 for their fifth loss of the season.
Sam Bradford now holds that distinction of best QB in the division for the Rams. He has completed 60.2 percent of his passes for 1,925 yards and 12 touchdowns. Frank Gore is the NFC West’s leading rusher, and has tallied 778 yards with three touchdowns in San Francisco.
Teammate Patrick Willis still sets the bar in the division defensively with 62 solo tackles, 78 total and two sacks. James Hall has kept his spot as division leader in sacks with 7.5.
Now let’s take a quick look at each NFC West Week 11 match up’s.
SUN, NOV 21 TIME (ET)
Arizona at Kansas City 1:00 PM CBS – Arizona dropped its fourth straight to the Seahawks last week, 36-18. They have scored 87 points in those four losses while allowing 113. The defense continues to let them down, ranking 27th in opponent passing yards and 28th in opponent rushing. The offense doesn’t do much to relieve the pressure as it ranks 30th in passing and 29th in rushing. When you combine a lack of defense and a lack of offense, somehow that has still added up to up to a 3-6 record and 3rd in the NFC West, so obviously there’s a bit of luck in Arizona. Derek Anderson has thrown for all of six touchdowns this year, while rushers Hightower and Wells have combined for barely 600 yards.
Meanwhile, Kansas City looked like a dark horse contender until two straight losses to Oakland and Denver last week. Overall I think the team was a bit tired after playing an OT in week 8 against Buffalo (which they won) then were forced to go to overtime again against Oakland. The Chiefs stand at 5-4 which is good for first, but that record doesn’t have the luster it did. They still have issues on passing, ranking 26th. QB Matt Cassel has tossed just 16 touchdowns. Their redeeming feature is the running backs who rank 1st in rushing, led by Charles and Jones.
The Chiefs have a noticeably stronger defense than the Cardinals, especially against attempts on the ground. That should allow the Chiefs to get back on track and earn a sixth win.
PREDICTION: Kansas City
Seattle at New Orleans 4:05 PM FOX- Seattle beat Arizona last week, 36-18.The offense doesn’t provide much usually, scoring a combined ten points in their week eight and nine losses. Matt Hasselbeck has thrown only seven touchdowns this year while Forsett and Lynch have combined for only four touchdowns on a little over 600 yards. One thing Seattle does pretty well is prevent the rush (14th) which is a non-factor this week since the Saints almost never run, ranking 25th overall with only 93.7 a game. I’m still a bit surprised the Seahawks have won five games this year.
New Orleans has six wins and features the number one team at preventing the pass, and they are not too bad at preventing the run either ranking 17th. Seattle has a slight tendency to throw the ball more often, so will be forced to run against that strong defense. Meanwhile, the Saints can throw all day as they rank 5th.
I fully expect New Orleans to shut Seattle down on the ground while passing right over their heads.
PREDICTION: New Orleans
Atlanta at Saint Louis 4:05 PM FOX- The Rams lost last week to San Francisco 23-20 in overtime. You could say it was a bit of a blow losing to a team that opened at 0-5. The Rams never seem to be able to muster much offense, three of their wins have come when they scored exactly 20 points, and they totaled 30 in the other win. The defense has actually done a solid job of keeping them in the game, ranking 6th in opponent rushing yards and 18th in passing yards.
Atlanta won its seventh game last week against Baltimore in a last second turnaround that should help team morale going forward. The team is 12th in passing and 8th in rushing, and they don’t rely too heavily on either one. The Falcons do a great job of preventing the run, ranking 7th.
The Rams will be simply outclassed by the Falcons; similar teams and styles, but Atlanta does it better.
PREDICTION: Atlanta
Tampa Bay at San Francisco 4:05 PM ET- San Francisco won its second straight last week against the Rams, and third of four. What makes the wins more surprising is that they have actually been better without QB Alex Smith. Troy Smith has been a capable safety net and has a good cast to dish to. Davis and Crabtree have combined for eight touchdowns.
Tampa Bay beat Carolina last week 31-16. The offense has been middle of the road, but has managed to carry the Buccaneers to a 6-3 record. Josh Freeman has done a nice job of leading the offense with 1,963 yards and 12 touchdowns.
The 49ers have seen a nice little streak of late, but they are not quite that good. Tampa is strong enough to halt they recent streak.
PREDICTION: Tampa Bay
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