Quarterback questions dominate NFC West

The Rams remain explosive and always will be as long as Mike Martz is the one designing their offensive philosophy and putting together their playbook. But are these the same Rams that won a Super Bowl and appeared in a second not long ago? Are they the same Rams that seemingly could score at will? Those are tough questions to answer until the season opens and we see how Marc Bulger is going to handle the starting quarterback job without Kurt Warner, who is now a New York Giant, looking over his shoulder pad. After becoming the starter in '03, Bulger showed signs of regression late in the season and into the playoffs. Just as in offseason drills, the Rams will devote a good portion of training camp to helping Bulger improve his accuracy on deep passes and stop forcing as many throws into coverage. The Rams' defensive line took a couple of significant hits with the free-agent departures of end Grant Wistrom and tackle Brian Young, and it remains to be seen how well those spots can be filled.
After beefing up their pass rush, the Seahawks' primary offseason goal was improving the NFL's 27th-ranked pass defense. They opened the vault particularly wide to acquire free-agent end Grant Wistrom. He doesn't consistently put up impressive numbers (see his 7½ sacks last year), but he is a difference-maker in so many other areas such as matching his considerable strength against the run and providing excellent spirit and leadership. First-round draft pick Marcus Tubbs should help fill the athleticism void in the middle of the Seahawks' defensive line after John Randle's retirement and pick up the run-plugging slack created by Norman Hand's departure. Second-round pick Michael Boulware was a linebacker at Florida State but has the speed and athletic ability to make an impact as a strong safety in the NFL. He started off slowly with the adjustment in early offseason workouts, but has made dramatic progress since. Seattle's secondary should receive a powerful shakeup with the addition of free-agent cornerback Bobby Taylor. Taylor can still shutdown some of the top quarterbacks in the game, or at the very least, put himself consistently in a position to make plays. Taylor has the size (6-foot-3 and 216 pounds) and long arms to hold his own against the larger and more physical receivers he will regularly see in this division. Another huge move was the decision to re-sign Darrell Jackson, the team's leading receiver last season and a hot commodity in the free-agent market, to a big contract.
This has been an offseason of sweeping change for the 49ers. Quarterback Jeff Garcia is gone. Where's Terrell Owens? Where's Garrison Hearst? Where's Derrick Deese? For the 49ers, the answers don't really matter at this point. Their focus must be on finding ways to make due with new people, beginning with Garcia's replacement, Tim Rattay. Make that a temporary replacement. Rattay can throw a better deep ball than Garcia. He plays with intelligence and shows steady leadership on the field. But after suffering a severely torn groin muscle in the offseason, Rattay is out, likely through the start of training camp. That doesn't seem to worry the 49er decision-makers much. They are confident second-year quarterback Ken Dorsey could take over and hold his own. Brandon Lloyd and Cedrick Wilson are entering camp as San Francisco's starting receivers, but that isn't necessarily a lock. First-round draft pick Rashaun Woods will have every opportunity to assume a prominent role and perhaps even push his way into the starting lineup. Woods had some struggles in the 49ers' first minicamp, but as he became more familiar with the offense, he performed better during later offseason workouts.
Dennis Green did not leave the relatively cushy life of an NFL television analyst merely to see how he would look stalking the sidelines in a headset again. Green is in Arizona to make the Cardinals a winner, and he intends to use every bit of the savvy and skills he has to convince his players they are not the sad sacks of the NFL. He not only has spent the offseason trying to reinforce that message, but also wants the members of one of the league's most maligned franchises to understand that they could easily be in the playoff hunt this year. Green added first-round draft pick Larry Fitzgerald to a receiving corps that already had one of the NFL's best up and coming receivers in Anquan Boldin. To get the fullest extent of their production, Green must be on target with his call to stick with unaccomplished Josh McCown as his starting quarterback. McCown had an impressive finish to the 2003 season, but still has plenty of prove. Free-agent defensive end Bert Berry should mean a significant boost to the Cardinals' pass rush. Berry doesn't have much size, but plays with remarkable passion and gives every ounce of energy on each snap. In general, Arizona's defense will emphasize speed and quickness. New coordinator Clancy Pendergast intends to have a unit that will swarm to the ball and force turnovers in bunches.

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