See what happens when NFC West teams don't just play against each other? Pretty pathetic performance for "our" division last weekend after going 2-2 week one. Nobody was able to pull out a victory The Cardinals defense continues to flounder, the Seahawks offense is approaching pitiful levels and the Rams had some costly turnovers against the Giants.
Admittedly, the 49ers and Seahawks had some tough match-ups against the Cowboys and Steelers, respectively. Both teams were coming off of tough losses and really needed a win. The Rams, however, played a Giants team that just doesn't look very good thus far. The Cardinals were playing the Great Grossman, but he threw two interceptions and the Cardinals offense played pretty well. That was a game they should have won.
Here's a closer look at how the division fared after the jump.
Arizona Cardinals at Washington Redskins
The Cardinals defense has given up over 900 yards of total offense the first two games of the season. As Jeremy Clarkson would say, "that is apocalyptically bad." Rex Grossman wasn't able to replicate his week one performance and he threw two interceptions. That's more like it Rex. The real problem for the Cardinals was defending the rush. They gave up 172 yards on the ground.
Offensively, they again played well. Kevin Kolb had another nice game statistically, and hooked up with Larry Fitzgerald for a 73-yard touchdown. Keep it going boys, my fantasy team "Alex Smith is my god" needs that. Beanie Wells also had a nice game, gaining 93 yards on only 14 carries. He's averaging 5.7 yards a carry so far this season. Maybe they should try giving him more carries.
Seattle Seahawks at Pittsburgh Steelers
Tarvaris Jackson is on pace to be sacked 80 times this season. He's on pace to break David Carr's sack record of 76. The good news: He may not last the 16 games he would need to break the record. The bad news: He may not last 16 games. Considering what he is working with, he really didn't play that bad. He completed 20 of 29 passes and didn't throw any interceptions, but the Seahawks only averaged 5.5 yards per pass attempt. I didn't watch the game, but I'd imagine Jackson didn't enough time to throw the ball down the field very often.
They couldn't run the ball either. They rushed for only 31 yards and averaged 2.4 yards per rush. Overall they managed just 164 yards of total offense. Defensively, they struggled to defend the pass and gave up 126 yards to Mike Wallace. The Steelers picked on cornerback Brandon Browner all game. I don't see things getting much better for the Seahawks. Their front seven is solid and they have two promising young safeties, but after that there is not much to be excited about when you watch this team.
St. Louis Rams at New York Giants
The Rams could have used Steven Jackson yesterday. Neither of their running backs, Carnel Williams and Jerious Norwood, averaged over three yards a carry. Sam Bradford did pass for over 300 yards and did not throw an interception, but he completed less than 50% of his completions. Eli Manning and the Giants had a rough start offensively, but the Rams were unable to capitalize and committed two costly turnovers in the first half.
The Rams passing defense did a decent job, allowing under 200 yards passing on the night, though they did give up two touchdowns through the air. The Giants were able to control the clock with their run game, though, and rushed 38 times for 119 yards (3.1 yards per carry). They won the time of possession battle 34:12 to 25:48.
The standout performer for the Rams on offense was Danario Alexander. He only had three receptions, but he gained 122 yards and scored a touchdown. James Laurinaitis was all over the field defensively and finished with 14 tackles and one tackle for loss.