You can make the argument that the Los Angeles Rams are in a better position to win the NFC West and push for a playoff spot over the San Francisco 49ers in 2025, but as NBC Sports recently wrote about the strength of schedule for SF and L.

Darnold had the best season of all the quarterbacks in the NFC West, but he did it with the Vikings, who had Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson and Aaron Jones. he had an elite supporting cast on offense. it is the only season in his career that he has done that, and even at the end of the year, the turnover-prone Darnold showed up.

In the betting odds for the 2025 season, the closest division race appears to be in the NFC West, where the 49ers are the slightest of favorites over the Rams — thanks in large part to the 49ers' last-place schedule.