Which Seahawks NFC West rival looked the best in week one?

The Seahawks came out of week one with a win, but they weren’t the only NFC West team with a W. Let’s see which division rival played the best.

The Seahawks didn’t play their best Sunday, but they did come out with the win. In the long run, it doesn’t matter if you win big or win ugly, as long as you win. But when you have to come from behind to beat a team that’s supposedly rebuilding by one point, it doesn’t build a lot of confidence. Especially when no NFC West team lost on opening day. So which team looked the best out of the gate? Let’s find out.

Arizona Cardinals. When I said that no division team lost, that doesn’t mean every team won. The Cardinals mounted a furious comeback to salvage a tie versus the Lions. Zona trailed 24-6 early in the fourth quarter but tied the game on the arm of Kyler Murray. The rookie threw two touchdowns in the fourth, including one to Larry Fitzgerald with 47 seconds left. Murray converted on a two-point conversion to get to 24-24 and force overtime.

The Cardinals took the lead with a field goal in overtime, but the Lions followed with one of their own. So we have the NFL’s least favorite outcome other than a strike. Like a tie, it isn’t all bad for Arizona, but it isn’t all good. They only generated 58 yards of offense in the first half but wound up with 420 total yards for the game. They came back from adversity. They also fell badly behind and allowed over 500 yards to Detroit. Coming from this far back to force a tie is a lot better than letting an 18-point lead slip away. Not a bad game for Arizona, not a good one as they reside in the bottom of the NFC West after one game.

San Francisco 49ers. The Niners defense was in cruise control in their 31-17 win over the Buccaneers. That’s a good thing, as their offense only had16 points on Tampa Bay. So how did they get to 31 points? The Niners pulled off not one, but two pick-sixes. It’s probably no surprise that Richard Sheman authored the first. The shocker is that Tampa Bay had their own pick-six to take their only lead on the game.

Jimmy Garoppolo wasn’t terrible, but he wasn’t great, either. He was 18 of 27 for 174 yards and a touchdown. Considering he also threw the pick-six, he engineered a net ten points on offense. That’s three Robbie Gould field goals and a two-point conversion. San Francisco was below average on offense, but their defense made huge plays when needed. Overall, I’d say this was a nice debut for the Niners.

Los Angeles Rams. The defending conference champs probably had the toughest assignment of the day, taking on the Carolina Panthers on the road. Neither team was among the league leaders in defense last year, and the 30-27 score reflects that. Neither Jared Goff nor Cam Newton were particularly effective as they each threw an interception. At least Goff managed to throw on touchdown pass.

This game was about the running backs. Todd Gurley looked healthy and picked up 97 yards on just 14 carries. Stablemate Malcolm Brown eased the load on the Rams star with 11 carries of his own, and scored on two short touchdown runs. Christian McCaffrey proved he’s an every-down back for the Panthers with 209 yards from scrimmage. Overall, I’d say the Rams are who we thought they were.

All three of our NFC West rivals showed some good qualities in their opening games. The Cardinals came back from an 18-point deficit in the fourth quarter. The Rams showed off a balanced backfield and proved they can win when Goff has an off day. The 49ers made huge plays on defense and enough offense to control their game. As much as I hate to admit it, the 49ers looked the best in week one. Maybe, just maybe, the old rivalry is back.