NFC West playoff race: Strengths, weaknesses for Seahawks, 49ers, Rams, Cards

It's midseason and the battle for the NFC West is wide open.

The Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks each have six wins. Entering Week 10, the Rams have a 37.1% chance to win the division, followed by the 49ers (35.0%) and Seahawks (27.6%), according to ESPN Research.

It's the sixth time since 2002 that there are three teams from the same division with at least six wins each through Week 9, according to ESPN Research. It happened last season in the NFC North with the Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings.

Since the playoff field expanded to seven teams in 2020, a division with three teams with at least six wins through Week 9 sent all three teams to the playoffs in three of the previous five instances.

The 3-5 Arizona Cardinals are the outlier, but they hope quarterback Jacoby Brissett can continue giving them a much-needed spark in the coming weeks.

The next two weeks are make-or-break divisional games for each team. This Sunday, the 49ers face the Rams (4:25 ET, FOX), and the Seahawks face the Cardinals (4:05 ET, CBS).

Here's a look at each NFC West team -- and its playoff chances according to ESPN's Football Power Index -- going into the second half of the season:

Seattle Seahawks (6-2)

FPI chances: 84.3% to make playoffs; 27% to win NFC West

Weakness: The Seahawks' offense ranks fifth in scoring (27.1 points per game) despite having one of the league's least productive running games. It's not for lack of trying. Seattle has the highest designed rush rate (48.1%) but is averaging 3.7 yards per carry, second-worst in the NFL only to the 49ers. Part of the issue is the Seahawks constantly face loaded boxes as a run-heavy team that likes to play with two tight ends or two running backs. Their trade for WR Rashid Shaheed could help, as his speed will give defenses a reason to drop a defender deep.

Strength: While you could say that the passing game is Seattle's strength, the defense deserves recognition. It's allowing 18 points per game (tied for fourth-fewest) despite injuries in its secondary, where Julian Love (five games and counting), Devon Witherspoon (five games) and Nick Emmanwori (three and most of a fourth) have all missed time. Backups have stepped up and the front four has picked up the slack.

Reason they make the playoffs: The Seahawks have two elements of a playoff team that can make deep runs: great quarterback play and the ability to get to the QB. Darnold is playing lights-out, showing that his breakthrough 2024 season with Minnesota wasn't just a one-year wonder. He ranks second in QBR (78.5) and now has another target in Shaheed to play opposite Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who's on pace to break Calvin Johnson's single-season receiving record (1,964 yards). The offense hasn't faltered since Week 1, but if it does, the defense is playing well enough to keep them in games. Leonard Williams, Byron Murphy II, Uchenna Nwosu and DeMarcus Lawrence have combined for 18 sacks, and they generate enough pressure on their own often enough for Mike Macdonald to not blitz, instead keeping an extra defender in coverage. -- Brady Henderson

Los Angeles Rams (6-2)

FPI chances: 88.3% to make playoffs; 38.4% to win NFC West

Weakness: The kicking operation. The Rams' field goal unit has cost them games this season, including in the Week 5 loss to the 49ers. Rams head coach Sean McVay said Sunday that the issues have "gone on for too long, and we've got to be able to fix it." Although McVay said that he didn't want to publicly point fingers, the Rams added a long-snapper to the practice squad on Tuesday.

Strength: Quarterback Matthew Stafford and the Rams' versatile offense. In his 17th season, Stafford is playing some of the best football of his career. During the offseason, McVay said he wanted to build a more versatile offense, so that if they did deal with injuries the way they did during the 2024 season, it would not "inhibit us the way that it did." As the season has gone on, that has looked like a higher usage of tight end: on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints, the Rams were in 13 personnel (three tight ends) on 45.5% of offensive snaps.

Reason they make the playoffs: The offense continues to look like the group that has scored 69 points in its past two games. Early in the season, the Rams struggled in the red zone, especially with Stafford targeting wide receiver Davante Adams. But in the past two games (against the Jacksonville Jaguars and Saints), Stafford has thrown five touchdowns to Adams. With a healthy Puka Nacua, this offense could lead the Rams on a deep playoff run. -- Sarah Barshop

San Francisco 49ers (6-3)

FPI chances: 90.8% to make playoffs; 34.4% to win NFC West

Weakness: The pass rush. The Niners have their warts, many of which have been exposed by a long list of injuries, but this is the area it has hit them hardest. They'll be without ends Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams for the rest of the season and Yetur Gross-Matos is also on injured reserve, leaving the 49ers to get creative in terms of personnel and blitzing to get after opposing quarterbacks. They rank last in the NFL in pressure rate (21.8%), tied for second-to-last in sacks (11) and 26th in pass rush win rate (32.4%), a dangerous recipe with divisional games remaining against MVP caliber quarterbacks Stafford and Darnold.

Strength: Even without key offensive contributors such as quarterback Brock Purdy (toe), receivers Ricky Pearsall (knee), Brandon Aiyuk (knee) and Jauan Jennings (shoulder/ribs/ankle) and tight end George Kittle (hamstring) for big chunks of the season, the Niners' offense has managed to move the ball consistently against most of their opponents. It's a credit to quarterback Mac Jones that the 49ers are fifth in the NFL in passing yards per game and to Christian McCaffrey, who leads the NFL in scrimmage yards (1,222) despite opposing defenses keying on stopping him every week.

Reason they make the playoffs: If the offense can get healthier and turn into the type of unit that can carry the team, they can use a favorable schedule to their advantage. As Kittle put it after last week's win against the New York Giants, the Niners need "to score a lot of points week in and week out" to help out their beat up defense. The potential return of Purdy, Pearsall and Aiyuk in the coming weeks could transform this offense into a unit that puts the points on the scoreboard to match its yardage output. -- Nick Wagoner

Arizona Cardinals (3-5)

FPI chances: 5.7% to make playoffs; 0.3% to win NFC West

Weakness: Closing out games, until Monday night. Arizona held a 17-point lead over the Cowboys heading into fourth, and after it was cut to 10, the Cardinals held on for the win. During their five-game losing streak, the Cards had the ball in the final minute three times. Twice, against Green Bay and Indianapolis, the Cardinals couldn't score on fourth down to take a late lead. The third time, Arizona tied the game at 20 against Seattle but then let the Seahawks march down the field in the last 33 seconds to hit a game-winning field goal. And twice, Arizona couldn't convert third downs around the two-minute warning that would've allowed them to try to run out the clock. Both times, against the 49ers and Titans, Arizona punted on fourth down and then gave up game-winning field goals.