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Kent Somers' piece about NFL rookies combining to start more games than in the past caught my attention Friday. I wanted to know how many games NFC West players have started as rookies in recent seasons. I wanted to break down the numbers by team ...

Rolando McClain's early retirement from the NFL comes three years after the Oakland Raiders made him the eighth overall choice in the 2010 draft. NFL Games Started By 2010 First-Rounders Pick Player Starts 10 Tyson Alualu ...

You might recall our March discussion from the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference regarding NFC West team-building strategies. St. Louis Rams chief operating officer Kevin Demoff, addressing conference attendees, noted that his team expected to...

NFC West teams have been stockpiling running backs. They selected six of them in the NFL draft last month. The Arizona Cardinals also added Rashard Mendenhall in free agency. Jacob from Gig Harbor, Wash., hit the NFC West mailbag with a question a...

One year ago, a visitor to the NFC West blog warned against reading too much into Russell Wilson's strong showing at the Seattle Seahawks' rookie camp. 2012 NFC West Draft: Rookie Starts Player Tm. Starts Russell Wilson SEA...

Nik Bonaddio of numberFire expects relatively big things from St. Louis Rams rookie Tavon Austin based on similarities with other receivers. Bonaddio explains why here. His expectations for Austin in 2013: somewhere around 59 receptions for 961 ya...

NFC West teams naturally expect more from earlier draft choices such as 2013 first-rounders Jonathan Cooper, Tavon Austin, Eric Reid and Alec Ogletree. All four of those early choices could wind up starting in 2013. It's an upset if they do not. ...

The NFL's rookie wage scale has diminished the negotiating part of contract negotiations. As a result, the Seattle Seahawks announced Friday they had signed seven draft choices. The San Francisco 49ers announced they had signed five of theirs. The...

The San Francisco 49ers and St. Louis Rams earned praise around here for maneuvering their way around the 2013 draft. Both teams entered the draft with considerable capital -- enough to facilitate significant trades up and down the order. The A...

Sometimes it takes a few years to fully assess an NFL draft class' impact. Imperiled veterans can't afford to wait that long. Among the NFC West veterans on alert as 2013 rookies arrive for minicamps Friday: Arizona Cardinals: Adding guards Jo...

College graduation dates can affect whether a rookie draft choice participates in his team's offseason program, and to what extent. Beanie Wells (2009) and Isaiah Pead (2012) are two higher-profile examples from the NFC West. Rules prevented both ...

Our post-draft amendments to pre-draft positional rankings continue with Matt Williamson, NFL scout for ESPN.com. Up next: safeties. NFC West teams drafted two of them, both in the first three rounds: Eric Reid to the San Francisco 49ers with t...

Our post-draft amendments to pre-draft positional rankings continue with Matt Williamson, NFL scout for ESPN.com. Up next: linebackers. NFC West teams drafted six of them if we count the San Francisco 49ers' Corey Lemonier and the Arizona Cardi...

Twenty-three of the 38 players NFC West teams drafted in 2013 ran the 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine in February. The chart shows the times they recorded, providing a feel for the track speed teams from this division added through the dr...

Peter King's report for Sports Illustrated from inside the St. Louis Rams' draft room gives us a much better feel for how the team operates. King had a back-stage pass to the draft, giving him a clear view of the Rams' thinking, their maneuverings...

The St. Louis Rams signed Jake Long and had two first-round NFL draft choices this year. The Seattle Seahawks added Percy Harvin, Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett. The San Francisco 49ers added Anquan Boldin and three of the first 55 players selected ...