Open thread: How many teams will the NFC West put into the playoffs?

Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty ImagesThe Seattle Seahawks are expected to push for a playoff spot and potentially wrestle the NFC West title away from the San Francisco 49ers. Needless to say, season-long projections do not have either the Los Angeles Rams or Arizona Cardinals in playoff contention. And yet, crazy things happen and no one should be discounted... or even presumed for a postseason berth.

After being a pretty lousy division for most of the Mike Holmgren seasons, the NFC West has been a gauntlet more often than not. In the Pete Carroll era, only four times (2010, 2011, 2016, 2017) has the division failed to produce multiple playoff teams. The 49ers are…