Another day, more news in the West. The usual, Niners talking playoffs, Rams talking Draft, and the Seahawks are talking about a little bit of everything. Hit the jump to find out what's up in the West.
49ers Vs. Rams Injury Report: Reggie Smith, Kendall Hunter, Chris Culliver Looking At Work - Niners Nation
The 49ers and Rams released their final injury reports for the week as they get ready for their Week 17 regular season finale and as expected, Delanie Walker has been ruled out with his broken jaw. The team is expected to re-assess his jaw next week to determine his availability for the playoffs. If the injury is going to take another three or four weeks of recovery, Walker would likely be IR'd to get a new tight end on the 53-man roster.
49ers Vs. Seahawks: Multiple Fines Handed Out - Niners Nation
The NFL handed out their fines for Week 16 and there were numerous fines from the 49ers-Seahawks game. 49ers offensive lineman Anthony Davis was fined $10,000 for blocking Anthony Hargrove on the back of his legs during a Kendall Hunter 24-yard run. Marshawn Lynch was fined $10,000 for wearing Skittles-themed cleats. I'm guessing his Skittles endorsement deal can cover that fine. Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman was also fined $15,000 for a horse-collar tackle.
Jeff Pearlman Is an Idiot; I Mean, My Objective Review of his Esquire Article - Niners Nation
Does Jeff Pearlman get it right about Tim Tebow and Alex Smith? Hardly.
Something Special About Patrick Willis - Niners Nation
On Sunday, the 49ers will have a chance to lock up the #2 playoff seed with a win against the Rams in St. Louis. Whether or not Patrick Willis will participate in said game is undetermined but he did resume practicing after suffering a hamstring injury. I don't believe the 49ers will need the perennial Pro Bowler in order to win this weekend, but it couldn't hurt if he suited up in case of emergency. San Francisco will need him in the playoffs against the leagues best teams so it would be advisable to sit him until then.
Aldon Smith, Bruce Miller Named To Football Outsiders All-Rookie Team - Niners Nation
The fine folks at Football Outsiders put together their 2011 All-Rookie Team and it should surprise nobody that Aldon Smith and Bruce Miller were on the team. Miller was in at fullback, while Smith was listed as "Joker/Pass Rusher Off The Bench." Whereas normally there would be an honorable mention spot, they recognized that Smith plays so many snaps even as a "part-time" player.
49ers Vs. Seahawks: Top Five Defensive Plays, Including Larry Grant's New Sack - Niners Nation
In one last bit of Week 16 news, I was a bit delayed in posting the weekly Top Five Defensive Plays from the previous week's game. It is actually a good thing I waited because there was a chance in the scoring of the most important play of the game.
Seahawks Injury Report: Breno Giacomini, Anthony Hargrove Questionable - Field Gulls
The Seahawks are relatively healthy, not counting the multitudes of players already on IR, as they head into their final game of the season at Arizona. Officially, right tackle Breno Giacomini is listed as questionable, and as Curtis Crabtree noted, if he's unable to play it's likely that Seahawks fans would get to see a little more of rookie Jarriel King. Also listed as questionable is DT Anthony Hargrove with a calf injury. (Also of note, it's kind of weird the NFL officially calls him "Tony", but that's neither here nor there.)
Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals: 8 Simple Things About Cardinals - Field Gulls
Season finales are rarely a good thing. It means that it's time for a break. It's time to say "See you later" to something you love to watch. They aren't always sad, because a season finale is not a series finale, but it is tough to say goodbye. We spend the whole year waiting, and then it finally gets here, and then by the time the end hits it feels like we hardly had a chance to catch up.
The Seahawks' Top Five Defensive Plays For Week 16 - Field Gulls
As I was watching this game, looking for some standout defensive plays to highlight, it struck me how few 'big plays' there actually were, on either side. When you've got two teams like this - San Francisco actually leads the NFL in turnover ratio at +26 and Seattle isn't that far behind, at 5th with +7 - both built upon the run and philosophically allergic to turnovers, the end result was fairly vanilla scheming, not a lot of chances being taken, and basically just a bunch of slogging and moving of the chains.
NFL Coaching Rumors: Jeff Fisher, A Primer On The Rams' Potential Head Coach - Turf Show Times
If the most recent rumors are to be believed, then Jeff Fisher will be the next head coach of the St. Louis Rams. Will he actually be the Rams' next head coach? That remains to be seen. Between now and when Stan Kroenke makes his hiring decisions, Fisher's name will come up again and again in connection with the Rams. It's worth knowing a little bit about him with Black Monday just three champagne filled days away.
The Future Of Josh McDaniels, Brandon Lloyd Is Linked - Turf Show Times
The St. Louis Rams will most likely be parting ways with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels when the season's over. How will that change things for the Rams?
Mock Draft for the St. Louis Rams - 2012 - Turf Show Times
Mock Draft for the St. Louis Rams - 2012 This brings trading down to new heights!