The NFL offseason is over and training camps are beginning as the 2023 season is right around the corner. To get you ready for the start of the new campaign, we will dive into every team in the league. We opened with the AFC East, NFC East and AFC West. On Thursday, we dive into the NFC West, a mashup of squads on the rise, middle-of-the-road teams and some that have to get through struggles of last season.
Below we look at the scouting report for the 49ers, Seahawks, Rams and Cardinals along with one interesting fact for each entering the season, plus we’ll look at the best and worst fan moments in every franchise’s history.
Team’s most important players:
2023 scouting report: Stop us if you’ve heard this before. The 49ers have the most talented roster in football but major question marks at quarterback. San Francisco’s three-way quarterback competition between Brock Purdy, Trey Lance and Sam Darnold will be the most interesting and important roster battles of the preseason as it’s filled with polarizing players and it has championship implications.
Interesting fact to know for 2023 season: The 49ers are once again a QB away from title contention. They went 15-5 last season (including playoffs) despite being one of six teams to use at least four different QBs in 2022. The other five teams all finished with losing records.
Best fan moments in team history — Collecting Super Bowls; ‘The Catch:’ From 1981 to 1995, the 49ers brought home five Super Bowl championships. They had Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Ronnie Lott, Charles Hadley and Fred Dean, all who would go on to be Hall of Famers. With so many greats coming together, the 49ers dominated the league for over a decade. And, of course, one of, if not, the most iconic reception in NFL history. In the 1981 NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park, the 49ers faced third-and-3 on the Dallas Cowboys‘ six-yard line. Being chased by the defense, Joe Montana found Dwight Clark, who leapt up in the back of the end zone to make the game-winning catch. The Niners went on to win the Super Bowl.
Worst fan moment in team history — Super Bowl losses: Even if you have other Super Bowl wins, the losses sting just the same. The 49ers got used to winning Super Bowls, but in 2012 the story ended in a different way. The Niners fell short in the Super Bowl, 34-31, to the Baltimore Ravens. With 1:50 remaining in the game, it was first-and-goal for the 49ers and a poorly thrown pass by Colin Kaepernick gave the Ravens the ball and just about sealed the win for Baltimore.
Their second Super Bowl loss came at the end of the 2019 season, when San Francisco faced the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV, losing 31-20. Both Super Bowl losses come as tough moments for 49ers fans.
Team’s most important players:
2023 scouting report: The Seahawks are coming off a winning season and a breakout year from quarterback Geno Smith. Their “rebuild” from the end of the Russell Wilson era has gone smoother than most on the outside expected, while the players and coaches have been confident in their group the whole way. Seattle had two solid draft picks, cornerback Devon Witherspoon and another weapon for Smith, wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Interesting fact to know for 2023 season: The Seahawks might be starting the Legion of Boom Part II if first-round pick Devon Witherspoon can follow in the footsteps of his new teammate Tariq Woolen, or perhaps last year’s Defensive Rookie of the Year Sauce Gardner. Witherspoon allowed an FBS-low 3.0 yards per attempt as the primary defender in coverage last season, a hair better than Gardner in his final college season as Cincinnati (3.1).
Best fan moment in team history — Super Bowl win: Led by quarterback Russell Wilson, the Seahawks wiped the floor with the Broncos, winning 43-8 in the 2014 Super Bowl for the franchise’s first-ever NFL title. The Broncos threw two interceptions, including one returned 69 yards for a touchdown by the Seahawks. Malcolm Smith, who was named the MVP, had a fumble recovery and nine sacks. Wilson finished the game with two touchdown passes.
Worst fan moment in team history — Goal-line pick to lose Super Bowl: With less than 30 seconds left in Super Bowl XLIX, down by four and the ball on the opponent’s 1-yard line, it looked like the Seahawks were about to win their second championship in two years. With one of the best running backs in the league, Marshawn Lynch, and two more chances to punch the ball in, it seemed like a no-brainer that Lynch would seal the deal. Patriots‘ Malcolm Butler had other plans, and when it was a pass play, he knew where he had to be. Butler intercepted the ball in the end zone, giving the Patriots a 28-24 win and their fourth Super Bowl win as they stunned the Seahawks.
Team’s most important players:
2023 scouting report: Expectations are low for the Rams in 2023 after a disastrous’ 2022 season followed by the departures of All-Pros Jalen Ramsey and Bobby Wagner this offseason. Still, anything is possible as the core of a champion remains with Sean McVay, Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald and Cooper Kupp returning this year.
Interesting fact to know for 2023 season: Stafford, Kupp and Donald combined to miss 20 games last season as the Rams went from Super Bowl champions and a 12-5 record to a 5-12 record in 2022. It was the worst record by a defending Super Bowl champion in NFL history and matched the Cardinals for the largest win total decline from 2021 to 2022.
Best fan moment in team history — Winning a home Super Bowl: The chances of winning a Super Bowl are slim. The chances of winning a home Super Bowl seemed nearly impossible, until two teams did so in back-to-back years. The season after the Buccaneers won in their home stadium, the Rams won their first in L.A. and did so at SoFi Stadium. With less than two minutes to play and down 20-16 to the Cincinnati Bengals, Matthew Stafford found Cooper Kupp for a game-winning, one-yard touchdown reception, marking Kupp’s second of the night.
Worst fan moments in team history — Moving; the Vinatieri kick: The St. Louis Rams are now just a memory, with the team once again going to L.A. In 2016, the NFL owners voted to relocate the Rams and St. Louis lost its football team. Then, there’s the time the Rams suffered a gut-wrenching loss to the Patriots. Back when Tom Brady had never won a Super Bowl and one of the last times he was considered an underdog, the Patriots took on the St. Louis Rams in the 2001 Super Bowl. The Rams were the hottest team in the league and the Patriots were a group led by a young backup quarterback. It was 17-17 with 1:30 left in the fourth quarter and no timeouts for the New England offense. The Pats could run the clock out and head to OT, but instead they marched down the field, leading to a game-winning 48-yard field goal by Adam Vinatieri as time ran out.
Arizona Cardinals
Team’s most important players:
2023 scouting report: Safety Budda Baker reportedly requested a trade this offseason, but even so has reported to minicamp and will report to training camp. Quarterback Kyler Murray tore his ACL in December, meaning Colt McCoy will likely be the starter. The rest of the team is nothing to fawn over, being one of the weakest rosters in the league. They lost wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Tennessee Titans this offseason, leaving major shoes to fill.
Interesting fact to know for 2023 season: The Cardinals may already have their eyes on the top prize of the 2024 NFL Draft, which is expected to be USC QB and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams. Arizona is an underdog in every game this season. It also has the Texans‘ first-round pick in the upcoming draft. The 1992 Colts (Steve Emtman & Quentin Coryatt) are the only team in the Common Draft Era (since 1967) to pick 1-2 in the same draft, but would anyone be shocked if Arizona joins them?
Best fan moments in team history — Hopkins catch; OT win in Warner-Rodgers postseason shootout: This catch was a contender for catch of the year the second it happened. It was improbable, impressive and seemed to defy the laws of gravity and as a bonus for the Cardinals, it was a game-winner as time expired. It doesn’t get more exciting than that. DeAndre Hopkins reached up for Kyler Murray‘s pass and despite three white jerseys surrounding him, the wide receiver was the one who came up with the ball (and maintained possession) to give Arizona a win against the Buffalo Bills. Also, in the 2009 NFC wild-card game, the Packers and Cardinals had a shootout, with nine passing touchdowns between the two quarterbacks, Aaron Rodgers and Kurt Warner. The game went to overtime, ending with a fumble recovered and returned for a touchdown by Cardinals linebacker Karlos Dansby, with a final score of 51-45.
Worst fan moment in team history — Losing Super Bowl XLIII: The 2008 Cardinals only went 9-7, but even with a mediocre record, they managed to make it to the big game, losing Super Bowl XLIII to the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-23. With the clock winding down and second-and-goal at the Steelers’ one-yard line, the Cardinals had the chance to take the lead going into halftime. Warner’s pass was intercepted by James Harrison, who took it 100 yards in the other direction, giving Pittsburgh a 17-7 lead. An incredible Santonio Holmes to-tap touchdown sealed it for the Steelers.
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Author: Shanna McCarriston
July 27, 2023 | 10:12 am
