1. San Francisco 49ers (10-6)
The 49ers are on track to regain their former glory. Mike Singletary and company have done a great job bringing in and developing players who fit their system. Alex Smith finally began to show signs of improvement last season, and the 49ers hope he’ll continue those steps forward. A change of scenery should help former first-round pick Ted Ginn Jr who played with the Miami Dolphins last year. Ginn, along with Michael Crabtree, Vernon Davis and Frank Gore, give Smith a great supporting cast.
2. Arizona Cardinals (8-8)
The loss of Kurt Warner isn’t the only thing that will hurt the Cardinals this season. Anquan Bolden was also traded to the Ravens, breaking up the best pass-catching duo in the league. The Cardinals also lost Karlos Dansby, the defensive captain and heart and sole of the “D”, to the Miami Dolphins. The offense and defense will both suffer from these key losses. Matt Leinart hasn’t proven himself worthy of his first-round draft status yet, and isn’t expected to perform any miracles this year either.
3. Seattle Seahawks (6-10)
The Seahawks had a strong draft this season and made a great front office move by bringing in former USC head coach Pete Carroll. However, they are still a year or two from being in the thick of the competition. Matt Hasselbeck is getting up there in age and isn’t what he used to be, but the Seahawks seem to think that the combination of Hasselbeck, Charlie Whitehurst, and J.P. Losman will be successful. They might be able to squeak by this year but there is no quarterback of the future on this roster. Russell Okung and Golden Tate will impact the offensive this season and strong safety Earl Thomas will anchor the Seahawk’s secondary for years to come.
4. St. Louis Rams (2-14)
The Rams made the right move in selecting Sam Bradford number one in this year’s draft. Unfortunately, they have many more problems than just the quarterback position. Of course, they still have one of the most dynamic running backs in the league in Steven Jackson, but the offensive line isn’t good enough to support Jackson or Bradford. As for the defense, the Ram’s bottom of the barrel defense did nothing exciting to improve this off-season, and will continue to struggle in 2010.
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