NFC West Offseason Preview

In today's parity-filled NFL, every team is one solid offseason away from being a playoff contender. With every team doing their homework for 2010, check out our daily look at each team's offseason to-do lists by division.

Arizona Cardinals

OFFSEASON STRATEGY
Most of the attention this off-season will be on quarterback Matt Leinart, but the Cardinals' efforts to shore up their defense could have a bigger impact on their success in 2010. The club needs a pass rusher. Inside linebacker Karlos Dansby is an unrestricted free agent and is likely to leave. Defensive end Darnell Dockett wants a new deal. Free safety Antrel Rolle's contract calls for an $8 million salary, and the club needs to rework that. It will be a busy offseason for GM Rod Graves and his staff.

Inside linebacker Karlos Dansby has been the team's franchise player the past two seasons, but the club won't place the tag on him again. It would mean guaranteeing Dansby about $14 million in 2010. The team already has paid Dansby $18 million over the past two years. It would have been cheaper signing him to a long-term deal. Free safety Antrel Rolle is due a $4 million roster bonus in March and his salary escalates to about $8 million. The team needs to rework his contract before the end of the month, or it might face releasing him.

TEAM NEEDS
1. Pass rusher: The Cardinals did a decent job with pressuring QBs this year, but they lack an elite rusher that could help close out games.

2. Inside linebacker: Karlos Dansby is likely to leave via Free Agency, and the team needs a playmaker at that position.

3. Quarterback: Matt Leinart is the only QB under contract. The club needs to draft a quarterback to prepare for the future.

St. Louis Rams

OFFSEASON STRATEGY
With the first overall selection in the draft, the Rams will be looking closely at several options as the offseason progresses. Paramount in their decision-making will be the quarterback situation. Marc Bulger is scheduled to be paid $8.5 million in 2010, and 2009 rookies Keith Null and Mike Reilly are the only other quarterbacks under contract.

Teams have until Feb. 25 to decide whether to place franchise and/or transition tags on their free agents. In an uncapped year, a team can use one of each. Last season, free safety Oshiomogho Atogwe played under the $6.342 million franchise tag. As a player with five accrued seasons, he will be a restricted free agent but can still be franchised. To franchise him again would mean a 20 percent increase in his salary to $7.61 million with two first-round picks as compensation. If restricted, it would be a 10 percent increase for a salary of $6.976 million with compensation of first- and third-round picks.

TEAM NEEDS
1. Wide receiver: The returning group has a bunch of complementary receivers, but no proven standout. The Rams have to find a way to score points and take the defensive pressure away from running back Steven Jackson.

2. Quarterback: Will Bulger return? Will the first few rounds bring another young quarterback to develop? Those questions will dominate the offseason leading up to the draft.

3. Defensive lineman: There is a need for both a presence inside and on the edge where the futures of Leonard Little and James Hall are unknown. A consistent pass rush from both spots is needed.

San Francisco 49ers

OFFSEASON STRATEGY
Coach Mike Singletary decided not to retain highly respected special-teams coordinator Al Everest for the 2010 season. He filled that position with Kurt Schottenheimer, who had not coached special teams in the NFL for 15 seasons. That was the only coaching change that Singletary expected to make. But he granted offensive-line coach Chris Foerster the opportunity to move closer to his family on the East Coast, as he accepted a job on Mike Shanahan's staff with the Washington Redskins. Foerster's departure allowed Singletary to hire Mike Solari, late of the Seahawks coaching staff. Singletary then added former 49ers standout guard Ray Brown as assistant line coach. The final departure on the staff occurred last week when quality control coach Shane Day was granted permission to leave the 49ers to assume the role of quarterbacks coach with the Chicago Bears.

On the surface, it does not figure to be an active offseason for the 49ers. The club has apparently decided that continuity will provide it with the best opportunity to take the next step after an 8-8 season. Quarterback Alex Smith is expected to return as the starter after playing relatively well in his 10 starts. The focus of the offense will be upgrading the offensive line with a young right tackle. The 49ers do not have too many looming contract issues, either. Underrated nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin is scheduled for free agency, but the 49ers can easily retain his services via use of the franchise tag. Cornerback Nate Clements is scheduled to make $6 million in 2010. Although that price might seem exorbitant, he is still considered a top cornerback and the club would be wise to find a way to bring him back.

TEAM NEEDS
1. Offensive tackle: The 49ers did not get consistently solid play from right tackle Adam Snyder, so that spot will be the top priority to fill in the draft. The 49ers should be able to accomplish that with one of their two first-round draft picks.

2. Return specialist: The 49ers struggled to find a player who could simply catch a punt. Their lack of production, and turnovers, in the return game were big factors in losses at Houston and Seattle. The club might look to land a dynamic return man within the first three rounds.

3. Cornerback: The club needs to add more speed to the secondary, and getting a young cornerback will give them the versatility to mix up their coverages on third downs.

Seattle Seahawks

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
With new general manager John Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll entering their first free agency and draft period together, there's some uncertainty to how the Seahawks will begin to mold their new team moving forward. During his tenure with Green Bay, Schneider and the Packers relied mostly on the draft to increase the talent level on the team. And Carroll said during interviews after he was hired that he didn't mind playing younger players at USC. So with three of the first 40 picks in the draft and a limited number of available free agents because of the likely capless year, the Seahawks likely will rely on the draft to improve the talent level on the team.

With the clock starting on teams beginning to add franchise tags to players that are entering free agency, the Seahawks likely will let the two-week period go without assigning the franchise tag to one of their possible free agents. Seattle likely will have 10 unrestricted free agents if the owners and players do not reach an accord on a new collective bargaining agreement by March. Wide receiver Nate Burleson, kicker Olindo Mare and defensive lineman Cory Redding would be the likely candidates for the franchise tag. Burleson would have to be signed at a price tag of $9.521 million, which is a steep price for a No. 2 receiver. He made $3.25 million last season and was due to make the same this year, but took a player option in his contract that made him a free agent.

Mare would cost Seattle $2.814 million as a kicker. He made 21 straight field goals last season and proved to be an effective kicker in the rain and wind at Qwest Field. But Mare turns 37 in June. Mare made $1.5 million last season. Another player Seattle could consider franchising is defensive lineman Cory Redding, who made $2 million last season and had an uneven performance in his first year as a Seahawk. The tag for defensive tackles is $7 million The deadline for applying the franchise tag is Feb. 25.

TEAM NEEDS
1. Running back: New offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates said Justin Forsett and Julius Jones are good fits for the team's zone blocking scheme. However, the Seahawks could still use a dynamic playmaker at the running back position.

2. Defensive end: With Patrick Kerney likely not coming back this year and the Seahawks struggling to generate a consistent pass rush the past two seasons, the team could use an elite pass rusher coming off the edge.

3. Offensive tackle: With Walter Jones likely retiring and Sean Locklear struggling to stay healthy, Seattle needs an upgrade at the left tackle position.