The NFC West enjoyed a change of scenery in 2024. The San Francisco 49ers had won the division in both 2022 and 2023 but tumbled to a last-place finish due to some hard luck and plenty of injuries. 

The Los Angeles Rams took home the division crown, beating the Seattle Seahawks via tiebreakers after both teams finished with 10 wins in the regular season. Seattle was forced to sit at home, whereas the Rams nearly knocked out the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles on the road in the divisional round. The Arizona Cardinals won as many games in 2024 than they did in the previous two seasons combined (8). 

How will things play out in 2025? There's plenty of ambitious moves this offseason as teams try to scale the division mountain. But which moves were the most bold for each franchise? 

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The Los Angeles Rams

The Boldest Move: The Cooper Kupp/Davante Adams transition

It would have been very easy for the Rams to stay committed for another year to Cooper Kupp. Kupp won a triple crown in Los Angeles, was a high sweat-equity player with the Rams, and had good rapport with Matthew Stafford. But his availability has been waning and he has not surpassed 812 yards or six touchdowns in any of the last three seasons. 

The Rams elected to transition to another aging veteran and master route salesman, inking Davante Adams to a two-year contract valued at $44 million through 2026. Adams, to his credit, has more 1,000 yard seasons over the last three years (three) than Kupp has in his career. With a different style of play opposite Puka Nacua at wide receiver, the Rams can play their isolation game to either half of the field as they'd like. Just as importantly, they can attack their plan for this offseason with confidence that they can be healthier throughout the marathon that awaits in 2025. 

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The Seattle Seahawks

The Boldest Move: The blank slate on offense

Talk about your all-time overhauls. The offensive coordinator? Gone. The quarterback? Gone. The two long-time staples at wide receiver? Gone. It's been an ambitious transition for Mike Macdonald's offensive group. Will it work? It's hard to say. This much change in major spots is a bold endeavor either way. 

Seattle is going to have a stout defense at their disposal, so it isn't like the Seahawks even need the offense to carry the load. But how well Klint Kubiak, Sam Darnold, and Cooper Kupp can integrate to the preexisting infrastructure could ultimately be a major determinant to how well this season plays out in the win column. The NFC West is expected to be highly competitive and having complementary football will be necessary if the Seahawks are going to once again win double-digit games this season and, hopefully, load a postseason berth. 

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The Arizona Cardinals

The Boldest Move: The defensive line overhaul

The Cardinals defense started to round into form in 2024 but it was still apparent that the unit was build from the back forward — the strength of the unit was the secondary. It's been an exciting offseason for Arizona in this regard because they legit may have flipped the strength to now live up front. Consider the investments. Former first-round pick Darius Robinson is getting a full offseason to round into form. The first-round draft choice this year is defensive tackle Walter Nolen. The team also added veteran linemen Calais Campbell and Dalvin Tomlinson. 

That's just on the interior. Arizona signed pass rusher Josh Sweat in free agency to play on the edge and invested a third-round draft choice in Oregon defensive lineman Jordan Burch. The depths of which this unit has been poured into this offseason is impressive and creates a bold new direction for Arizona's trench play in 2025. 

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The San Francisco 49ers

The Boldest Move: The youth movement

This was a necessary offseason for the 49ers. It wasn't exactly a pleasant offseason, but it was necessary. The new commitment to QB Brock Purdy paints a very clear picture on one of the cornerstones of the roster for the foreseeable future. Several other marquee investments remain on big contracts — including Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Trent Williams, Brandon Aiyuk, Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, and Deommodore Lenoir. 

Names like Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga, Deebo Samuel, Javon Hargrave, Aaron Banks, Jaylon Moore, Charvarius Ward and more are all gone. In their place is names like Dee Winters, Nick Martin, Malik Mustapha (coming off an injury), Ricky Pearsall, Alfred Collins, CJ West, and Renardo Green are going to be tabbed to fill the void. The 49ers can move forward with these young talents and begin the cycle of talent development all over again. The hope will be that the centerpieces of the roster keep the floor of the roster high enough to compete throughout the transition. 

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