Upheaval makes NFC West most interesting division

Bruce Arians was preparing his team for kickoff of Sunday's game against the Oakland Raiders, so he wasn't watching his division's most interesting game unfold in St. Louis. But when the Arizona Cardinals coach learned how the St. Louis Rams upset the Seattle Seahawks - and the wild way in which the Rams pulled it off, with a successful fake punt deep in their own territory late in the game - Arians was hardly surprised.

Pleased, sure, but If Arians has learned anything since arriving in Arizona last year, it's that anything goes in the NFC West - which is maintaining its reputation as the league's wildest and messiest division.

'That was some big cojones ... with those fakes,' Arians said Monday. 'That's a great win for them. Our division's tough.'

Come January, we might be talking about the NFC West as once again being the NFL's toughest division. But right now, it might just be most compelling, with the defending champs, the Seattle Seahawks in turmoil at 3-3, the 4-3 San Francisco 49ers badly needing to heal up and then rally after their bye week, and the St. Louis Rams (2-4) appear to be improving on both offense and defense.

And then there are Arians' Cardinals. At 5-1, Arizona is off to its best start in nearly 40 years, but with a daunting schedule yet to come. Arizona has only played one game against a division team so far, a win against San Francisco last month. Up next are conference games against Philadelphia and Dallas - both of whom look like playoff teams out of the NFC East - before getting their first crack at the Rams. Four of the Cardinals' six division games come in the final six weeks of the season.

'It gets a little stronger. Each week is going to be a challenge,' Arians said. 'Obviously, we feel there's no one on the schedule we can't beat, and there's nobody on the schedule that can't beat us.'

But with quarterback Carson Palmer back from the nerve issue in his shoulder and arm that forced him to miss three games earlier this season - including the Cardinals' only loss, at Denver - the schedule appears to be the most daunting challenge for Arizona.

Not so for the 49ers and Seahawks, who both face serious challenges as they approach midseason.

The Seahawks, after the loss Sunday in St. Louis, have dropped consecutive games for the first time in two years and face questions about their offensive identity, defensive depth and locker room culture. The stunning trade of wide receiver Percy Harvin revealed friction among the Super Bowl champions and the losses to Dallas and St. Louis showed the Seahawks are vulnerable and no longer the NFL's biggest bullies. Seattle (3-3) will try to avoid a three-game losing streak Sunday at Carolina.

'I feel a lot of success coming around the corner,' Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson said after Sunday's loss. 'That's what I hope for, that's what I believe. I believe in our football, I believe in the guys that we have. I believe in our coaching staff that we have.'

Perhaps it helped the Seahawks that the 49ers, too, are in turmoil. Head coach Jim Harbaugh dismissed his players on Monday afternoon for their bye week, hours after returning home to the South Bay after a 42-17 loss to Denver, second-most lopsided loss in the Harbaugh era.

'I want them to enjoy their families, enjoy their children if they have them, play with their kids and come back mentally stronger, physically stronger,' Harbaugh said.

Harbaugh and his staff will remain in their offices at Levi's Stadium, planning for a healthier team to rejoin them next week. Harbaugh said Monday he was optimistic injured players like linebacker Patrick Willis, cornerback Jimmie Ward and guard Mike Iupati will be able to play when the team returns for their Week 9 game against St. Louis.

The Niners are also planning for the return of linebackers Aldon Smith, who is serving a nine-game suspension, and NaVorro Bowman, who is recovering from the gruesome knee injury suffered in the NFC championship game in January. Their return could transform a 49ers defense that has played well at times in the first half of the season (see the defensive shutout against Philadelphia) while at other times, has looked lost. That was certainly the case Sunday night in Denver, when the Broncos scored six touchdowns.

'We'll rally,' Harbaugh said. 'Surround each other, and onward.'

Follow Lindsay H. Jones on Twitter @bylindsayhjones. PHOTOS: Best of NFL Week 7

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