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Are the champion LA Rams still the gold standard in NFC? If not, who else are contenders?

With so much chaotic and big-name movement within the AFC this offseason, be it through splash free-agent signings or monstrous trades, nobody seems to be paying much notice to the NFC this year.

Everybody is squawking about the Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs, the top two favorites to represent the AFC in Super Bowl 57 at State Farm Stadium on Feb. 12. There’s also been a ton of talk about the Los Angeles Chargers, the Baltimore Ravens, the Denver Broncos, the Las Vegas Raiders, the Indianapolis Colts, the Miami Dolphins and last year’s AFC champion, the Cincinnati Bengals.

But remember, somebody has still got to represent the NFC, which has won the past two Super Bowls and eight of the past 15 overall. The problem this season is that the NFC just seems to be too wide open. There doesn’t appear to be a clear-cut favorite entering Week 3.

According to the Las Vegas oddsmakers, the NFC team with the best shot to make it to the Super Bowl is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, with the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints and Cardinals next in tow.

Like the AFC, there are only three undefeated teams in the NFC after the first two weeks — the Bucs, Eagles and New York Giants. In the NFC West, once considered to be the strongest division in all of football, all four teams are tied with 1-1 records, including the Cardinals and Rams, who meet Sunday at State Farm Stadium.

Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA;  Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) throws the ball while brought down by Los Angeles Rams linebacker Anthony Hines III (57) during the second quarter of the NFC Wild Card playoff game. The ball was intercepted for a touchdown.
Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) throws the ball while brought down by Los Angeles Rams linebacker Anthony Hines III (57) during the second quarter of the NFC Wild Card playoff game. The ball was intercepted for a touchdown.

The Rams, reigning Super Bowl champions, have won 10 of the past 11 meetings against the Cardinals, including a 34-11 rout in a Wild Card playoff game last season. They’ve also beaten Arizona seven straight times in Glendale.

“They’ve obviously had our number here for a long time and that’s not lost upon us, but we’re just trying to improve,” Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury said. “The last two weeks we have started so slow and we had 12 penalties last week (against the Raiders). There’s a lot that we have to focus on. We know they’re a talented team and the defending champs, so it’s really been about us improving this week.”

Are the Rams still the gold standard in the NFC? Let's take a look.

Case for the Rams

Veteran left tackle Andrew Whitworth, whose 15,736 combined snaps in the regular season and postseason are second-most in the NFL history behind only Tampa Bay quarterback Tom Brady, retired. Star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. remains a free agent after suffering a torn ACL during the Rams’ Super Bowl win over the Bengals.

But Los Angeles added two huge new pieces in wide receiver Allen Robinson and linebacker Bobby Wagner during free agency, and it still has much of the core group that won the NFC West with a 12-5 record and made it to the Super Bowl for the second time in the past four years.

Although they got blown out by the Bills in their season opener, the Rams rebounded last week with a victory over the Falcons. Their schedule, which includes tough road games at the Buccaneers, Saints, Chiefs, Packers and Chargers, is daunting, to be sure.

But the Rams still have some of the best players in the business at various positions, from defensive back Jalen Ramsey, defensive lineman Aaron Donald, quarterback Matthew Stafford and wide receiver Cooper Kupp. They also have one of the most innovative offensive minds in the NFL in head coach Sean McVay.

Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA;  Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) calls a play against the Arizona Cardinals during the first quarter of the NFC Wild Card playoff game.
Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) calls a play against the Arizona Cardinals during the first quarter of the NFC Wild Card playoff game.

“They’re very methodical,” Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray said. “They get guys in space and they’re very smart. To be able to see what Matt Stafford, a Texas guy, do what he did last year, I’ve always been a fan of Matt in just the way he’s able to throw it and the different arm angles. You see all the no-look stuff and he was really underrated up until last year just because of being in Detroit and stuff like that, so I’ve always been a fan.”

But are the Rams still the team to beat in NFC or have they become just another face in the crowd?

“Yeah, I think they are (the team to beat) until somebody knocks them off,” Kingsbury said. “They’re still the champs and it’s a marathon, not a sprint. We saw that and they did a great job I thought of building last year into the playoffs and playing their best football at the end.

“I’m sure they’ll do the same thing. We’re all kind of trying to figure out who we are as teams right now, but I think they’re as good as anybody out there.”

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Cardinals left tackle D.J. Humphries agrees, although he left the door open for some debate.

“They won the Super Bowl, so everybody’s got to give them the respect,” he said. “I couldn’t tell you who is the team or the gold standard. … They are the standard because they won the Super Bowl last year. That’s all I can tell you. We’re tied. There’s no guy right now. Everyone is fighting for that slot to wear that crown, but everybody knows who’s got the chip and they got the bragging rights.”

Case against the Rams

If there’s any truth that the dreaded “Super Bowl hangover” exists, that’s one potential strike against the Rams.

But here’s another: As talented as Stafford is, he also can be turnover prone. Last season, he finished second in the league with 41 touchdown passes, but he also tied for the NFL lead in interceptions (17) with the Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence. Stafford has 188 interceptions in 184 career games and he’s leading the NFL in picks this year with five through two games.

“You want to have those at a minimum,” McVay told reporters. “But I also want to make sure that it’s a fine line between not allowing him to compete at a high level, where we want to be smart but aggressive.”

Stafford was dealing with an elbow issue through much of the spring and summer and if that issue begins to bother him again, it could spell major doom.

Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA;  Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) spins away from Arizona Cardinals outside linebacker Markus Golden (44) linebacker Dennis Gardeck (45) during the fourth quarter of the NFC Wild Card playoff game.
Jan 17, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) spins away from Arizona Cardinals outside linebacker Markus Golden (44) linebacker Dennis Gardeck (45) during the fourth quarter of the NFC Wild Card playoff game.

Another problem through two weeks has been the lack of a rushing attack. The Rams are only averaging 58.5 rushing yards per game, the second fewest in the league, despite having two decent running backs Darrell Henderson Jr and Cam Akers. Their 2.7-yard average per rushing play is tied with the Chargers for the lowest in the NFL.

Knowing they need some type of boost, the Rams brought back running back Malcom Brown, whom they cut loose after the 2020 season.

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Another issue that could derail a Rams repeat is injuries and at present, they're down three cornerbacks entering Sunday's game. Troy Hill (groin) has been placed on injured reserve, and Cobie Durant (hamstring) and David Long Jr. (groin) have been ruled out against the Cardinals.

There are also some concerns with the Rams’ pass rush. Sure, Donald remains one of the most feared pass disruptors in the game, but losing Von Miller to the Bills in free agency could be a bigger problem than expected. Donald can’t be asked to do it alone. Grabbing former Rams edge rusher Takkarist McKinley off the Titans’ practice squad was a telling sign. But he’s been injury prone his whole career and there’s no telling if he’ll be able to add anything substantial.

Meanwhile, the Rams’ offensive line could be their greatest worry. Not only do they have a new left tackle in Joe Noteboom, a huge downgrade from Whitworth, but right guard Treymayne Anchrum Jr. is out for the season after suffering a fractured ankle and center Brian Allen is out multiple weeks with a knee injury. Rookie guard Logan Bruss tore his ACL during training camp.

There’s been a ton of moving pieces up from for LA and in the NFL, that usually means trouble.

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Biggest threats to the Rams

We took the question into the Cardinals’ locker room and outside linebacker Markus Golden not surprisingly wasn’t afraid to tackle it.

“There’s a lot of good teams in the NFC, man,” Golden said. “You’ve got to start with Tampa. The Eagles are the real deal, too. I played against them when I was in New York, so I know how they roll. Their fans are crazy, and they’ve got a lot of support. You’ve got the Rams, but you’ve got us, too.

“If you look at all those teams, all those teams got quarterbacks. That’s what it’s about — having that quarterback. We’ve got our guy (Kyler Murray) and I trust him more than anything.”

Golden said people shouldn’t be counting out the Cowboys, the Saints or the 49ers, either.

Jan 17, 2022; Inglewood, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) runs the ball against the Los Angeles Rams defense during the first half in the NFC Wild Card playoff football game at SoFi Stadium.
Jan 17, 2022; Inglewood, California, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) runs the ball against the Los Angeles Rams defense during the first half in the NFC Wild Card playoff football game at SoFi Stadium.

“Dak (Prescott) is hurt, but Dallas has got some good players and a good defense, so that will help them keep it right until Dak comes back,” Golden said, adding of the Saints, “With that defense, you’ve got to give it to them. They got Jameis (Winston) down there, too, and he’s always capable of making plays.”

The 49ers lost starting quarterback Trey Lance to a season-ending ankle injury, but “You can’t count Jimmy (Garoppolo) out,” Golden said. “Jimmy’s a hell of a quarterback and he’s always winning and he’s always making good throws. They always seem to keep it together. I’ve got a lot of respect for them.”

So which team will emerge from the NFC to play in Super Bowl 57?

“You never know. It’s early, man. It’s real early,” Golden said. “We just need to get a little deeper into the season and we’ll be able to decide from there. Maybe.”

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Jeff Saturday, the former longtime NFL center, has already declared his pick to win the NFC. During an appearance this past week on ESPN’s “Get Up,” he said it’s going to be the Eagles.

“They are the best team in the NFC right now and it’s not close,” Saturday said. “They are a physically dominating football team. When you think about an offensive and defensive line … this is a team. Not only do they throw it for 300, they run it for 180 and it’s like no big deal.

“And again, when you have a quarterback who is part of the run game like (Jalen) Hurts is, it opens up avenues that other teams don’t have.”

Murray and the Cardinals might disagree with that last part.

“We know who we are, and we know what we’ve got to do,” Golden said. “We’ve just got to get out there and start games fast and finish games strong.”

Note

The Cardinals have elevated wide receiver Andre Baccellia and cornerback Jace Whittaker from the practice squad to the active roster.

Have an opinion on the Arizona Cardinals? Reach McManaman at bob.mcmanaman@arizonarepublic.com and follow him on Twitter @azbobbymac. Listen to him live on Fox Sports 910-AM every Tuesday afternoon at 3:30 on Calling All Sports with Roc and Manuch. .

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Cardinals to discover if Rams are still gold standard in wide-open NFC