NFL power rankings for Week 10 are making the rounds and they all confirm what we already know: the NFC West is a terrible division. The consensus worst division in football has no teams over .500 after losses by the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals last week and the rankings reflect that. The St. Louis Rams took over the top spot.
Over at SB Nation, the Rams leapfrogged the Hawks. Neither team, however, has a ranking to be proud of. Seattle checks in at No. 22, with Arizona in at No. 21. Joel Thurman has good news for the Seahawks, though!
They've been embarrassed the last two weeks, 33-6 and 41-7. Fortunately for them they're still in the thick of the NFC West race.
At ESPN, the experts weren't as kind. Seattle slides in at the No. 24 spot, down four from last week. The Rams, also the top NFC West team in ESPN's poll, are at No. 21 this week. NFC West blogger Mike Sando had this to say about the Seahawks' woes.
Getting Russell Okung back will help the offensive line, but the defensive front is in shambles.(Sando)
CBS Sports had harsh words for the NFC West, as well. Senior writer Pete Prisco took the opportunity to rip the division and muse about teams getting an automatic playoff berth.
The winner of the NFC West is ... nobody.
Why not? Don't give the winner a playoff berth. The division is a disaster, yet one of those teams will make the playoffs and host a playoff game.
With the fun of ripping the NFC West over, Prisco gets down to business, moving the Rams up one spot to No. 19 and the Seahawks down four spots to No. 23. The Arizona Cardinals check-in at No. 25 and the San Fransisco 49ers are at No. 27. He's right, this division is bad.
Fox Sports wasn't any kinder to the Seahawks. After a crushing defeat at the hands of the New York Giants, the Seahawks hit the skids, falling seven spots to No. 24 this week. The Rams were eight places clear of the Seahawks, staying at No. 16 this week.
Seattle, like many teams, has been decimated of late by injury. They were almost non-competitive during last week's loss to the visiting Giants. If they continue their downward spiral, they might as well continue to get a look at QB Charlie Whitehurst, who they are paying $4 million to this season.
While the rankings may seem bleak, it's clear anyone can win the NFC West this year. With the division so bad, it may just take a .500 record to secure a playoff berth and a home game. At least we have that going for us.