Arizona Cardinals: Great shot at winning NFC West

The Arizona Cardinals have left some skeptics out there but they have a good chance to take the NFC West again

After a less than stellar 2016 campaign, the Arizona Cardinals chances to win the NFC West in 2017 would not seem to be that much greater if you looked at things on paper.  Good thing this game isn’t played on paper.

The Seattle Seahawks once again are the favorites to win the NFC West and why wouldn’t they? They won in 2016, their personnel hasn’t changed much, and they know how to get it done.

As for the Cardinals, they didn’t go make any huge splashes in free agency and in fact lost some key players.  However what they still have now is a winning combination on both sides of the ball.

Odds to Win the 2017-18 NFC West  (courtesy of Bovada, Las Vegas)                            

Seattle Seahawks                      2/7                   

Arizona Cardinals                      3/1                               

Los Angeles Rams                    12/1                            

San Francisco 49ers                  18/1     

Looking at that there can’t be much of a surprise.  The Cardinals are pretty much a middle of the pack team in most 2017 predictions.  Getting 3/1 odds to win the NFC West in 2017 is actually very good in itself.

Depending on who you are listening to, the Cardinals could be back where they found themselves in 2016, they could be a wild-card team, or they could win the NFC West.  I see them as NFC West champions.

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Sure they’ve lost some guys from the 2015 team that went 13-3 and took a trip to the NFC Championship Game.  However, most of the skill players and key defensive players are still here.

We can chalk up 2016 to a number of issues.  However the Cardinals know they have a great opportunity to get back to the playoffs this season with quarterback Carson Palmer and receiver Larry Fitzgerald returning.

They split with the Seahawks last season, going 1-1-1.  They had their chances to sweep as we all know.  It’s a game of inches.  Another inch and David Johnson scores an overtime touchdown in the tie game.

There shouldn’t be any dropoff in 2017 and in fact should improve upon their performance this season. The schedule works in the Cardinals favor, especially the first half of the season.  There is no reason why the Cardinals can’t win the NFC West.