Arizona Cardinals
Love - Surprising Potential
I'm giving myself half a bonus point this time last year for reminding you that the Arizona Cardinals' defense was far, far better than their 5-win 2012 season would suggest. Lo and behold, Bruce Arians was just the offensive wizard the Cards needed to complement their underrated secondary - doubling the Cardinals' win total, making Carson Palmer look serviceable, and getting Arizona to the cusp of a very stacked NFC playoff race. This time around, they'll add one of the best left tackles in the game today in Jared Veldheer as well as speedy WR Ted Ginn to keep beefing up Palmer's game against the other great defensive minds of the NFC West. Don't look now, but Arizona may just be the trendy darkhorse pick you've been waiting to bring up awkwardly at cocktail parties where no one cares about football.
Hate - Can Carson Palmer Really Do This Twice?
Answer: Not without some help, given that Palmer was sacked a career-high 41 times last season. The Cardinals are addressing their protection issues in a substantive way for once with the aforementioned Veldheer, but it's a wonder that they ever got to 10 wins last season in spite of Palmer's punishment and his other career high: 22 interceptions. A little luck and new management can go a long way with some team turnarounds, especially in Year One, but the Cardinals would be hard-pressed to repeat last season's success if this journeyman QB can't achieve a higher level of passing mojo than he's shown in recent years.
San Francisco 49ers
Love - Isn't Every Year the 49ers Year?
I mean really, what else is there to say about a team that has been to three NFC Championships in a row? Before you go yammering on about how the Niners haven't actually won a Super Bowl yet under Jim Harbaugh, remind yourself how very, very close they were in each playoff game they lost during that time span and how dominant they've been on the whole since Neck-Veined McPleatsMaster first took that short drive up the coast in 2011. With a brand new stadium to break in, depth at nearly every position, and a highly motivated group of guys who've brushed the edge of Super Bowl glory three years in a row, why not the 49ers this year? It goes without saying this is not the NFC ending I'd like to see this season, but at least the "Six-burgh [blech] Steelers" wouldn't feel so special if San Francisco finally brought home another Lombardi.
Like I said before, the 49ers are so stacked this year that it's hard to imagine them losing a step for any reason, but it hasn't been the prettiest offseason away from Candlestick/Levi's, etc. He of regressive tattoo decisions Colin Kaepernick got entangled in some shady-to-disturbing bro adventures in Miami. Then Jim Harbaugh said some really, really dumb things about it despite allegedly caring about women. Harbaugh also had his crying-in-the-rain moment of truth with management when rumors surfaced and then lingered for a little too long that the front office was willing to trade him for even more draft picks despite an unimpeachable win-loss record in San Francisco. Then of course there's Aldon Smith doing his best Lindsay Lohan/Plaxico Burress impression with multiple substance abuse and weapons possession charges and a possible suspension to start the 2014 season. It's enough to make a Hard Knocks producer cry.
St. Louis Rams
Love - Robert Quinn, Destroyer of Worlds
"Robert Quinn, who?," We all would have said this time last year. But Quinn is far from an anonymous defensive end after a blockbuster 19 sack, 50 tackle, 7 forced fumbles kind of 2013 season with a Rams team already known for its ferocious pass rush. In just three years, the guy has gone from relative unknown to an every-snap All Pro. That's a feat in and of itself, but imagine how opponents will feel this season when they're forced to choose between double-teaming Quinn, Chris Long and James Laurinatis. It's too early to say whether or not No. 94 can repeat this kind of performance year after year, but I like his chances with a little help from this kind of front seven.
Hate -Still Looking Fourth Best
After a decade of playing second fiddle to Peyton Manning's Colts, Jeff Fisher must be feeling some deja vu in a division that won 2 out of every 3 games played last season and landed both spots in the NFC Championship. The Rams have taken noble steps forward under Fisher including two first round picks with major upside in 2014, but it still seems hardly enough to compete with the likes of the Cardinals, Seahawks and 49ers. St. Louis has struggled in establishing its offensive bread and butter since Steven Jackson left, and Sam Bradford's monster rookie contract continues to drag the Rams through inflexible mediocrity in free agency. It's hard to point fingers at anything St. Louis has done since the team parted ways with Steve Spagnuolo, but who knows how much patience ownership and a dwindling fanbase will have if the Rams spend another hardfought year at the bottom of the pack?
Seattle Seahawks
Love - A Defense of Epic Proportions
You may have forged a selective memory about Super Bowl XLVIII given that it was decided in about 10 minutes of playing time hidden between four times as many commercials. But that wouldn't do justice to a superb effort by the Seahawks defense. Heck, they scored more points than Peyton Manning and made Manning look like, well, Ryan Leaf in the process. More importantly, the Seahawks made defense fun to watch again after years of league rule changes that have effectively put QBs like Manning in the Pope Mobile. They hit hard, they make exceptional plays, and they don't overthink it. Expect a whole lot more of that in 2014 and probably less colorful press conferences now that it's virtually impossible to underestimate the Seahawks.
Given how hard it is to repeat Super Bowl appearances much less wins back to back, the Seattle Seahawks have almost nowhere to go but down this season. Don't get me wrong, they've got way more potential to do so than, say, the roster-bled Ravens last year, but there's a crazy number of things that have to go right including plain dumb luck to make it to the big dance these days. The NFC West has become a nine-circle defensive gauntlet over the past few seasons, and you can make legitimate arguments for why each team in this post is better today than it was a year ago. The Seahawks still have a young, proven core, but they've also already lost major defensive contributors in Brandon Browner, Walter Thurmond, Red Bryant and Chris Clemmons in free agency as well as two of Russell Wilson's receiving targets, Golden Tate and Sydney Rice. Add a Marshawn Lynch contract hold out to the mix, and there's a real possibility the Seahawks could be off to a slow start in 2014. Be on the lookout for plenty of "Super Bowl hangover" hits on your newsfeed.
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