NFC West race gets even tighter after Week 6

The Rams dropped to third place in the division with their loss to the 49ers.

After six weeks, the Los Angeles Rams are 4-2. Given all the traveling they’ve had to do and the difficulty facing a once-healthy Cowboys team, the talented Bills and the still-dangerous 49ers, a 4-2 record after the first six games is certainly respectable.

But, they’re technically third in the NFC West, losing the tiebreaker with the 4-2 Cardinals based on division record; Arizona is 1-0 while the Rams are 0-1. Week 6 brought the division even closer together in the standings, especially with Seattle having the week off.

Here’s how the standings look after six weeks, topped by the only undefeated team left in the NFC.

  • Seahawks: 5-0 (0-0 in NFC West)
  • Cardinals: 4-2 (1-0)
  • Rams: 4-2 (0-1)
  • 49ers: 3-3 (1-1)

In Week 6, the Seahawks had a bye, so they remained atop the division. The Cardinals beat the Cowboys on Monday night, winning by a wide margin (38-10). It’s their second straight win, getting them back above .500 at 4-2.

The Rams, of course, lost to the 49ers on Sunday Night Football, dropping their record to 4-2. The win was more important for the 49ers than the loss was for the Rams, considering San Francisco was beginning to fall dangerously behind at 2-3 entering Week 6. A loss would’ve dropped them to 2-4, two games behind the third-place Cardinals.

But now they’re just one game out of second place and within striking distance of the Seahawks, who they still have to face twice this season.

It’s only Week 7 and there’s still a lot of football to be played, especially when considering there have only been two NFC West matchups so far. The Seahawks have yet to play anyone in the division, while the 49ers have played in both NFC West games thus far.

Division play will ramp up in the coming weeks, beginning with Seahawks-Cardinals on Sunday. Then Seattle will play the 49ers in Week 8 and the Rams in Week 10. There’s no doubting that the Seahawks are the best team in the division right now, but things can change in a hurry over the next month with three of their next four games coming against NFC West foes.

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