Rams' Rival Possesses Offense Inferior to Rest of NFC West

Offensive triplets consist of a team's quarterback, running back, and best wide receiver or tight end. It often provides a good indication of how successful an offense will be, and while three NFC West teams are ranked inside the top 12 for their offensive triplets, Seattle remains the clear outlier.

As mentioned, the Rams sit at three with Matthew Stafford, Kyren Williams, and Puka Nacua.

"Few teams are more dangerous offensively than the Rams. Stafford is aging at 37, but he still has a prodigious arm that threw for 3,762 yards and 20 touchdowns in 16 games last year, wrote Verderame. "He’s surrounded by elite talent, headlined by Williams and Nacua, with the former amassing 1,299 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns and the latter nabbing 79 receptions for 990 yards in just 11 contests."

After tying up Brock Purdy and George Kittle to extensions this offseason, the San Francisco 49ers come in ranked at seventh as they are joined by 2023 NFL Offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffery.

"If San Francisco can stay healthy, expect its offense to return to top-end form. Purdy has a new contract and is hoping to bounce back from a relatively down year, going for 3,864 passing yards and 20 touchdowns in 15 games. McCaffrey is also trying to rebound after playing in just four games, while Kittle is coming off a fantastic campaign of 1,106 yards and eight touchdowns."

Despite massive strides made to reinforce the defense, the strength of the Arizona Cardinals resides in their offense as Kyler Murray and James Connor are joined by Trey McBride, a man who just signed an extension to become the highest-paid tight end in football.

"If Arizona is going to make the playoffs in the third year of coach Jonathan Gannon’s regime, it’ll be because the offense takes wing. Murray accounted for 4,423 total yards last season, with McBride hauling in 111 receptions for 1,146 yards and two touchdowns. Conner accounted for 1,094 yards on the ground on 4.6 YPC and eight touchdowns, rounding out Arizona’s attack."

Then Seattle comes in at 22 with system quarterback Sam Darnold, Kenneth Walker III, a man with an injury-riddled 2024 season, and breakout star Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

"Seattle traded away Geno Smith and DK Metcalf this offseason. In Smith’s place is Darnold, who comes over from Minnesota after posting an MVP-caliber season with 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns. He’ll be bolstered by the running of Walker, who rushed for 573 yards and seven scores in 11 games last year. Watch for Smith-Njigba to continue ascending after posting 100 catches for 1,130 yards in 2024."

Seattle did make strides in their offense, adding former Rams receiver Cooper Kupp, fellow Super Bowl champion Marquez Valdez-Scantling, and first-round pick Grey Zabel. However, a lack of true playmaking talent with health remains their Achilles heel.