A list of teams in the NFC West: Which is the most successful?

A list of teams in the NFC West: Which is the most successful?

Ciku Njuguna
updated at August 10, 2023 at 2:07 PM

The National Football League (NFL) consists of two conferences, the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). Each conference consists of 16 football teams placed in four divisions, the North, South, East and West. Dig into this article for a complete snapshot of all the teams in the NFC West.

Who is number 1 in the NFC West?
Arizona Cardinals fans react to their teams' selection in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft at Union Station on April 28, 2023, in Kansas City, Missouri. Photo by David Eulitt.
Source: Getty Images

What is NFC in the NFL? The National and the American Football Conference were created following the 1970 merger between the National Football League and the American Football League. Have a look at this extensive list of the performance and history of all teams in the NFC West division.

How are the AFC and NFC divided?

Each conference has 16 football franchises split into the East, West, North and South. Each division has four franchises. Each spring, the League executes a unique scheduling formula for the next season, ensuring each plays with every other franchise from every division in the other conference once every four years.

What teams were in the old NFC West?

In 1967, the NFC West was created. At the time, it was called the NFL Coastal Division with four clubs, the Los Angeles Rams, Atlanta Falcons, the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Colts. Additional changes included the departure of the Seattle Seahawks in 1977 and the replacement of the Colts with the New Orleans Saints during the NFL -AFL merger.

What teams play in NFC West?
Christian McCaffrey, #23 of the San Francisco 49ers, catches the ball for a touchdown during the third quarter at SoFi Stadium on October 30, 2022, in Inglewood, California. Photo by Ronald Martinez.
Source: Getty Images

What teams were in the NFC West in the 80s?

At the start of the decade, the Atlanta Falcons led the NFC West standings with a 12-4 win-loss record, followed by the Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers and the New Orleans Saints. Yarbaker's ranking of the National Football Conference franchises' performance rated the 49ers as the second-best team in the League with several titles.

What teams were in the NFC West in the 90s?

In 1990, NFC West had four NFL franchises, while the rest of the divisions had five each, with the exception of AFC Central. At the beginning of the decade, the division's teams included the San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions. In addition to a couple of exits and entrances throughout the decade, in 1999, the San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Rams and Carolina Panthers.

How many teams are in the NFC West division?

What 4 teams are in the NFC West division? The San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals make up one of the most successful National Football League franchises. Find out all about what teams play in the NFC West.

NFC West standings
Nick Scott (right) and Russ Yeast (left) of the Los Angeles Rams celebrate a partially blocked punt in the first quarter of the game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on September 25, 2022, in Glendale, Arizona. Photo by Mike Christy.
Source: Getty Images

Although the Seahawks defeated the rest of the franchises, clinching the playoff ahead of the 2023 season, the 49ers clinched a wild card spot for the 2022 championship playoffs and later the division title. Here is a summary of the clubs' performances entering the 2023 season.

Rank

Franchises

Wins

Losses

Winning percentage

Home record

Road record

Division record

1.

San Francisco 49ers

13

4

0.765

8 - 1 - 0

5 - 3 - 0

6 - 0 - 0

2.

Seattle Seahawks

9

8

0.529

5 - 4 - 0

4 - 4 - 0

4 - 2 - 0

3.

Los Angeles Rams

5

12

0.294

4 - 5 - 0

1 - 7 - 0

1 - 5 - 0

4.

Arizona Cardinals

4

13

0.235

1 - 8 - 0

3 - 5 - 0

1 - 5 - 0

Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals date back to 1898, making it the oldest football team in the NFL. Formerly known as the Chicago Cardinals, the Cardinals has held an impressive performance throughout its history with the exception of 1935, 1936 and 1938. However, the BR ranks the franchise as one of the least successful American football squads.

Los Angeles Rams

Founded in 1936, the club has moved to three cities recording impressive League wins thrice as the Cleveland Rams, Los Angeles Rams, St. Louis Rams and later as the Los Angeles Rams again. The Rams are the first NFL franchise to win three championships in three cities.

What team plays in the NFC?
George Kittle, #85 of the San Francisco 49ers, catches a pass against Kamu Grugier-Hill #57 of the Arizona Cardinals for a touchdown during the third quarter at Levi's Stadium on January 08, 2023, in Santa Clara, California. Photo by Ezra Shaw.
Source: Getty Images

Have the Rams always been in the NFC West? As the original National Football Conference teams, the Rams and the 49ers have maintained decades-long rivalry without leaving the division.

In the 87 seasons since 1937, the Rams' best performance records include 604 wins against 592 losses and 21 tied games. Additionally, the franchise has a 26-27 Playoff Record with five Super Bowl appearances and two wins.

San Francisco 49ers

At the start of the team's journey, the San Francisco 49ers were members of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). However, the 49ers moved to the NFL in 1950 following the collapse of the AAFC. Together with the Rams, the San Francisco 49ers were the first NFL franchises to join in the division's inaugural season.

The San Francisco 49ers are statistically the best NFL squad, with 74 seasons in the League. The 49ers have recorded 612 wins against 510 losses and 16 tied games throughout history. The club won five Championships titles with seven Super Bowl appearances.

Who has won the most NFC West titles?
Isaiah Simmons, #9 of the Arizona Cardinals, celebrates after sacking Geno Smith #7 of the Seattle Seahawks during an NFL Football game between the Arizona Cardinals and the Seattle Seahawks at State Farm Stadium on November 06, 2022, in Glendale, Arizona. Photo by Michael Owens.
Source: Getty Images

Seattle Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks are one of the best-performing squads in the National Football Conference West, with several title wins under their belt. The team played in the division's inaugural season in 1976 before moving to AFC West in 1977. The Seahawks returned to the NFC West after winning two AFC division championships in 2002 as the NFL realigned its teams.

The Seahawks have 48 seasons in the NFL between 1976 and 2023. In that time, they have held a 383-358 win-loss record with one tied game and a 17 - 19 playoff record. Additionally, they have three Super Bowls appearances and one win.

Has a team ever switched from AFC to NFC?

The Seattle Seahawks is the only NFL team that has played in both AFC and NFC. They are also the only NFL squad in the NFC West that switched between the American Football Conference and the National Football Conference West.

Which NFC West team has the most Super Bowl wins?

Three of the squads that play in the division have won the Super Bowl. Scroll down to find a summary of the Division's Super Bowl record and the NFC West teams that have never won a Super Bowl.

NFC West standings
Cooper Kupp, #10 of the Los Angeles Rams, holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy after Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium on February 13, 2022, in Inglewood, California. The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20. Photo by Ronald Martinez.
Source: Getty Images

Franchises

Appearances

Wins

Losses

Touchdowns

Points per game

Points

San Francisco 49ers

7

5

2

29

34.1

239

Los Angeles Rams

5

2

3

9

17.0

85

Seattle Seahawks

3

1

2

9

77

25.7

Arizona Cardinals

1

0

-

3

-

-

Collectively, the teams in the NFC West carry a rich amount of history and pride. Additionally, squads such as the 49ers, Seahawks and Rams have continually represented the division at the top of the League as some of the best-performing football teams.

READ ALSO: What teams are in the AFC North? A closer look at the teams that define the division

Sports Brief recently published a feature on one of the divisions of the American Football Conference. The article covers the four pro football franchises, including the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns, and the Cincinnati Bengals. Click on the link above to find out the history and records of the AFC North.

Authors
Ciku Njuguna photo
Ciku Njuguna
Ciku Njuguna is a journalist with 3 year’s experience in content creation based in Kenya. She currently covers sports personnel as well as team biographies.