NFC West at the Quarter Mark

Arizona Cardinals (2-2) - Apparently the Cardinals can't win against good teams on the road this year, either. After losing Anquan Boldin for a week in a pointless play against the Jets, the Cardinals play the Bills and Cowboys before their bye. After riding the bubble for two weeks, opinion on Kurt Warner's ability as a quarterback have come back down to Earth. Gunslinging only works against crappy teams. It also pleases me that all of the preseason talk about how good the Cardinals defense was going to be has since ended. The Antrelle Rolle experiment at FS was a dismal failure. Karlos Dansby is having an average year so far, but he's not the Shawn Merriman everyone thought he was. Without a top defense and a very, very one dimensional offense, the Cardinals "success" won't last long.

San Francisco 49ers (2-2) - So, my first question is whether or not the 49ers reformed offense is a result of the addition of Mike Martz or the addition by subtraction of Alex Smith? I'm going to guess the latter. Smith has done absolutely nothing of note in his time in San Francisco. Whaa whaa he had to learn x different systems in x years, guess what... so did Jason Campbell, and Campbell was still a passable starter. JT O'Sullivan has been sacked a lead leading 19 times or something ridiculous like that. Clearly the offensive line has to protect him better lest we endure an awkward return of the Alex Smith show. Oh wait, he's on IR again. No surprises there. Even Shaun King is a better alternative anyways. Frank Gore is finally living up to his potential, but the defense has shown no improvement from last year.

Seattle Seahawks (1-2) - Things are looking up for the Seahawks. The early bye gives key starters an extra week to heal (before they get put on IR like the rest of Seattle's receivers). The defense is doing well stopping the run but rank 25th against the pass. Good thing they signed Marcus Trufant to that multi-year deal in the offseason, because it obviously helped... Shockingly, the Seahawks are ranked second in run defense. And this is with Julius Jones as the starter. Did anyone see that coming? I guess his 2-season Dallas attempt to tell us that he sucks was actually just a bluff.

St. Louis Rams (0-4) - The Rams are by far the worst team in the league. Firing Scott Linehan? Ok. Hiring defensive coordinator Jim Haslett? What? The Rams haven't allowed less than 31 points this season. Meanwhile Chris Long is doing nothing, and Steven Jackson is just starting to get back into rhythm. The offensive line is still horrible despite having numerous starters healthy, which many people used as an excuse for last year. However all hope is not lost (yet) as they play in the weakest division in the league. Playing the NFC and AFC East doesn't help though, and all of the teams in the NFC West are pass-happy. It could be a long season for the Rams again.