Niner Noise
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5 reasons why 49ers could win Super Bowl 57 next season

By Peter Panacy

Head Coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers hands the NFC championship trophy to CEO Jed York (Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images)
Head Coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers hands the NFC championship trophy to CEO Jed York (Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images) /
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Cooper Kupp, Odell Beckham Jr., Los Angeles Rams
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp (10) with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (3) Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

Reason No. 2: NFC West won’t be as formidable

One of the big predictions for the 2021 NFL season was the NFC West would send at least three teams into the playoffs.

Correct. And for anyone questioning whether or not the NFC West was the toughest division in football this season, they’re wrong.

However, this isn’t likely to be the case again next year. If anything, the divisional prowess the NFC West has sustained for some time might be altering in a big way once 2022 rolls around.

For starters, let’s look at the Rams. They went all-in this year to win a Super Bowl, highlighted by the aggressive offseason trade with the Detroit Lions for quarterback Matthew Stafford, followed by offseason pickups of EDGE Von Miller and wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.

Both Beckham and Miller are free agents this offseason. And with LA being over the projected 2022 salary cap by nearly $15 million, according to Over the Cap, it’ll be tough to re-sign them and will also likely force some cap casualties along the way, too.

With so many early NFL Draft picks traded off by Los Angeles to go all-in this year, one might expect a notable regression by the Rams in 2022.

Perhaps even more interesting to 49ers fans is just how much flux the Seattle Seahawks are in, which leads us to our next point about the nature of the conference in general.