NFL Offseason – Allen Robinson. Marquise Brown. Drew Lock (stifles a giggle). There are many new faces within the NFC West this yr. There are additionally loads of summer season storylines: the Rise of Trey Lance, offensive line battles for the 49ers and Rams, some new defensive wrinkles for the Seahawks. Walkthrough’s 2022 NFC West Coaching Camp Preview will get you prepared for the entire preseason motion, from camp battles to joint practices to preseason video games which may really be value watching.
Arizona Cardinals 2022 Coaching Camp Preview
Heading Into Camp: Steve Keim and Kliff Kingsbury achieved all of their offseason aims. 1) They earned lavish contract extensions regardless of having not completed very a lot for 3 years; 2) They efficiently friend-zoned Kyler Murray; 3) They tossed extra cookies and ice cream (Marquise Brown, rookie tight finish Trey McBride) into their offensive procuring cart, regardless that they had been despatched to the grocery retailer for greens like reinforcements at cornerback, on the offensive line, and nearly all over the place else.
Now it is time for Kingsbury to toss the roster right into a blender and create one other smoothie. This time, he must be sure that it is not cool and refreshing within the early autumn however lumpy and rancid come December.
Camp Battles to Watch: The Cardinals will attempt to substitute Chandler Jones with some mixture of Devon Kennard and rookies Myjai Sanders (Cincinnati) and Cameron Thomas (San Diego State). Kennard is a high-effort journeyman who has recorded simply three sacks within the final two seasons. Sanders and Thomas are each massive and toolsy as heck, however the Cardinals have a rotten monitor document with toolsy younger linebacker/edge prospects (see Zaven Collins, Isaiah Simmons, Haason Reddick). J.J. Watt and Markus Golden are nonetheless round, however they’re extra like second and third pass-rush choices lately than double-digit sack guys, and the Cardinals secondary goes to wish lots of assist.
Fantasy avid gamers ought to keep watch over the tight finish battle, the place Zach Ertz will begin however McBride will battle Maxx Williams eat up some share of the targets. Williams is anticipated to start out camp on the PUP listing, which is able to open up alternatives for McBride, a clean short-to-intermediate route-runner and pass-catcher within the mould of the younger Ertz.
Newcomer to Obsess Over: Marquise Brown is an improve over Christian Kirk within the slot and ought to be a viable WR1 throughout DeAndre Hopkins’ six-game suspension. Rondale Moore can also be nonetheless within the image, however there’s loads of room in Kingsbury’s gadgety offense for 2 slippery slot guys, and Brown is a a lot better deep possibility. Brown will make the Cardinals much more enjoyable to look at through the common season. However then, enjoyable has by no means been the Cardinals’ downside within the Murray-Kingsbury period.
Coaching Camp Circle-It Date: The precise dates weren’t official at press time, however the Cardinals and Titans will follow collectively forward of their preseason finale in Nashville on August 20. The joint practices will present many extra alternatives for each press swimming pools (and their social followers) to look at Murray throw to his battalion of playmakers than any preseason recreation.
San Francisco 49ers 2022 Coaching Camp Preview
Heading Into Camp: If “I Wrote 3,500 Phrases Breaking Down Every of Trey Lance’s 9 Move Makes an attempt Versus Packers Backups and Found Some Good, Some Dangerous,” is your form of content material, then that is the coaching camp for you!
Camp Battles to Watch: Jake Brendel, who has been knocking across the bottoms of depth charts since 2016, is anticipated to interchange retired Alex Mack at heart. However incumbent proper guard Daniel Brunskill, coming off a shaky season, additionally has expertise at heart, and 49ers rumormongers assume that JC Tretter might be signed if Kyle Shanahan would not like what he sees early in camp. Each guard positions are additionally in flux, although Aaron Banks, a second-round choose final yr, is penciled in to interchange Laken Tomlinson on the left aspect.
In abstract, the 49ers are experiencing lots of transition on the offensive line for a workforce that is additionally making an attempt to stay within the playoff chase whereas handing the reins to a novice quarterback.
Newcomer to Obsess Over: Who wants newcomers when you’ve got a Lance-is-the-next-Patrick Mahomes narrative AND a Deebo Samuel contract kerfuffle to carry your consideration? However cornerback Charvarius Ward will each put Lance to the take a look at in follow on daily basis and low-key clown anyone who leans too hard into the Lance-Mahomes comparisons.
Coaching Camp Circle-It Date: Walkthrough might joke about obsessive preseason quarterback arm-angle protection, however we’ll be watching each transfer Lance makes too. The primary half of the Packers-49ers preseason recreation on August 12 ought to be a blast. Of all of the quarterbacks we need to see this offseason, Lance is the least possible one to be mothballed for the preseason, as a result of he has barely performed any soccer in any respect since 2019.
Los Angeles Rams 2022 Coaching Camp Preview
Heading Into Camp: Rams coaching camp is sort of a cross between America’s Received Expertise and a month of Shrine Sport practices. It is an opportunity to look at individuals solely draftnik completists have ever heard of compete to earn a recurring position with the top-heavy, cap-strapped, draft-denialist Tremendous Bowl Champions.
Camp Battles to Watch: Third-round choose Logan Bruss (Wisconsin) is the favourite to interchange Austin Corbett at proper guard, however he has a lot of competitors. We might listing all their names, however we now have by no means heard of any of those guys and neither have you ever.
David Lengthy is the possible starter at cornerback throughout from Jalen Ramsey with Troy Hill getting back from the Browns to play within the slot. However keep watch over rookies Decobie Durant (fourth spherical, South Carolina State) and Derion Kendrick (sixth spherical, Georgia). Durant is a bundle of uncooked pace and perspective. Kendrick is a step-and-a-half gradual but discovered a method to begin for each Clemson and Georgia Nationwide Champions. The Rams have a knack for locating roles for sleepers and sq. pegs keen to work for ideas.
Newcomer to Obsess Over: Allen Robinson will take over the outdated Robert Woods position after eight seasons within the “my quarterbacks stink so do not count on an excessive amount of from me” position with the Jaguars and Bears. Robinson made soothing sounds on the Jim Rome Show in June about how nicely he’ll mesh with Cooper Kupp. After years of wilting on the vine as a WR1, Robinson might be extra keen than most big-name wideouts to step right into a secondary position.
Coaching Camp Circle-It Date: None. Rams preseason video games are boring by even preseason recreation requirements, and there aren’t any joint practices on the schedule. Rams camp is greatest admired from afar.
Seattle Seahawks 2022 Coaching Camp Preview
Heading into Camp: Oh, what to make of this delicate Seahawks reboot? Maybe the Seahawks are tanking in plain sight, with Pete Carroll offering cowl from criticism. Perhaps they actually assume they will flip issues round shortly within the aftermath of the Russell Wilson commerce. Perhaps, simply possibly, Carroll and Jon Schneider loved some outrageous fortune within the 2010-to-2012 drafts, have been coasting on these bumper harvests for a decade, and have lastly rolled to a cease. Regardless of the case, the Drew Lock/Geno Smith quarterback controversy is only one of many rubbernecker’s delights in retailer for Seahawks followers this summer season.
Camp Battle to Watch: Lock versus Smith stands out as the weakest quarterback competitors any NFL workforce has foisted on its followers since Mike Shanahan gave us Rex Grossman versus John Beck in Washington in 2011. Lock nonetheless appears to be like like a mid-round rookie after three NFL seasons and 21 begins. Seven years on the bench have turned Smith right into a typical journeyman dink-and-dunker who runs virtually in addition to he needs he did. The Seahawks will encompass each quarterbacks with simply sufficient expertise to actually spotlight their limitations: not sufficient playmakers to permit anybody to dink-and-dunk to glory, however too many to make use of as an excuse for failure.
With Chris Carson’s future unsure, rookie Kenneth Walker (Michigan State), Rashaad Penny, Deejay Dallas, Travis Homer, and presumably Shaun Alexander, Derrick Fenner, and Jim Jodat will compete for roles within the working again committee. The Seahawks will in all probability preserve (and use) 4 working backs, however a chunky depth chart could make for some entertaining preseason viewing and fantasy soccer hand-wringing.
Newcomer to Obsess Over: New defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt has been a Seahawks assistant for years, however former Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai was introduced aboard as “affiliate head coach.” Hurtt and Desai each coached for Vic Fangio prior to now, and it seems like Carroll has given them his blessing to Fangio-up the stale Seahawks protection with extra blitzes and completely different appears to be like within the secondary. These modifications might need actually helped the Seahawks protection during the last two or three seasons, after they nonetheless had sufficient Legion of Increase leftovers to scare opponents and the offense may contribute greater than 20 factors per recreation. This yr, “blitz extra” will in all probability imply “preserve sending Jamal Adams after the quarterback, as a result of if we drop him into deep protection we would as nicely get the kickoff return unit prepared.”
Coaching Camp Circle-It Date: The Seahawks face the Steelers on August 13 and the Bears on August 18: two alternatives to look at each groups attempt to make sense of their quarterback points.
