The 49ers, Seahawks and Cardinals all lost their Week 9 games and kept San Francisco’s slim division hopes alive.
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Any glimmer of hope for a 49ers miracle comeback in the NFC West stayed alive in Week 9 with the entire division going winless.
San Francisco fell to the Packers 34-17 on Thursday Night Football. The Seahawks dropped a road game in Buffalo 44-34, and the Cardinals lost a heartbreaker at home 34-31 to the Dolphins. The Rams were idle on their Bye week.
Here’s what the NFC West standings look like after Week 9:
This race is going to be fascinating whether San Francisco is in it or not, but losses across the board yesterday does keep hope alive for those who believe it isn’t over until it’s over.
A 49ers upset win over the Saints in Week 10 would put them in a great spot heading into their Week 11 Bye. Then they get the Rams coming off the Bye week in Week 12 where they’ll probably be healthier. If they can also knock off the Rams and get more help with a couple losses above them in those three weeks, they’re right back in the thick of it.
It’s a long shot, but Week 9’s results didn’t do anything to push San Francisco further away from retaining their division crown.
Arizona’s Kyler Murray and Seattle’s Russell Wilson are early favorites to take home the NFL MVP award. Who, if either, will end up taking home the award?
Through two weeks of the season, NFL fans and analysts are already making their MVP award predictions. While there are quite a few right now, it’ll narrow down to about two or three candidates by midseason. Two of the very popular picks to this point are division rivals — Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson.
For the Cardinals, Murray has been often compared to Wilson. Their similar playing style and stature on the field make them an easy comparison. Coming out of the draft, Murray’s pro comparison was Wilson himself.
Both Murray and Wilson are trying to lead their teams to the top of the gauntlet that is the NFC West. Heading into week 3, three teams are 2-0, with the last place team being the defending NFC Champion 49ers. Should the division crown fall to Murray’s Cardinals, or Wilson’s Seahawks, MVP votes will come rolling in. To this point, the West is the consensus best division in the game.
Comparing Murray and Wilson’s supporting casts:
It’s no secret that the young & rapidly ascending quarterback has won the MVP award the last two seasons in Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, While Mahomes won the award seemingly by midseason in his year, Jackson was very much going toe-to-toe with Russell Wilson on a weekly basis at one point. Despite Wilson and Jackson’s similar 2019 campaigns, Wilson did not receive a single MVP vote. The takeaway here — the voters of the Associated Press love the young & new stars.
Big-name players do two things for a football team. They help a team win games and they create media attention. Arizona and Seattle both have their share of these players.
Wilson’s Seahawks are no stranger to household names. Seattle’s offensive supporting cast currently consists of D.K. Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Chris Carson and Greg Olsen.
Murray’s supporting group is highlighted by DeAndre Hopkins, Larry Fitzgerald, Christian Kirk and Kenyan Drake.
Both quarterbacks obviously have their fair share of talent and players that receive plenty of media coverage. Arizona and Seattle each made a blockbuster trade this offseason in DeAndre Hopkins and Jamal Adams. Those moves already made them two of the most talked-about teams in the offseason. That has carried over into the season.
To conclude here, Arizona and Seattle have both been talked about heavily and are receiving the sort of attention a team with an MVP-candidate needs, so that their player may take home the award.
Two Elite Dual-Threat Quarterbacks:
The NFL loves their mobile quarterbacks, with Wilson and Murray being two of the best. To this point, Murray has been better with the rushing attack, with Wilson being the better passer.
The MVP winner needs highlight-reel plays. Being a part of a good football team is not enough. Both quarterbacks have given plenty of those in just two games.
Russell Wilson makes a perfect throw to DK Metcalf for the 54-yard TD! #Seahawks
Here, Russell Wilson drops a perfect 54-yard bomb right over the head of the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year, Stephon Gilmore. In terms of highlight-reel plays, that will certainly do.
Through two weeks, Kyler Murray has the following stats:
66.7% completion percentage
516 passing yards
2 passing touchdowns/2 interceptions
158 rushing yards
3 rushing touchdowns
Meanwhile, Russell Wilson’s passing statistics are ridiculous:
82.5% completion percentage
610 passing yards
9 touchdown passes/1 interception
68 rushing yards.
Murray’s passing touchdown numbers will need to improve to compete with Wilson’s on paper. Both teams have had similar games to this point. They each handled a mediocre team(ATL for Wilson, WAS for Murray). Wilson and Murray also each embarrassed an elite defense(NE for Wilson, SF for Murray).
Media Hype & Conclusion:
Both the Cardinals and the Seahawks have had a promising start to the 2020 season. With the way the NFC West is going down, it may be the Arizona-Seattle matchups themselves that have the most impact on the MVP award, as well as division standings.
NFL Network’s Brian Baldinger has selected Murray as his MVP choice in 2020. More and more analysts are beginning to believe in Arizona’s second-year quarterback.
Former NFL Pro Bowl punter and talk show host Pat McAfee also calls Murray the “Next Great QB.”
If Wilson’s current pace continues and Murray continues to improve each game, there may very well by an MVP race in the NFC West.
