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- May 5, 2012
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NFC WEST
Arizona Cardinals
Safety Tyrann Mathieu is rehabbing his second ACL injury in three seasons. He tore it in Week 15 last season, missing the final two games of the regular season and the Cardinals' run to the NFC Championship game. While this injury isn't as complex as his first knee injury, which included his ACL and LCL, it's still No. 2 for the Honey Badger during his NFL career. This raises concern about his durability and puts the Cardinals in the precarious position of handling his return the right way. They don't want to push Mathieu to return too early, but they need him on the field as soon as possible in 2016 to make a run at Super Bowl LI. -- Josh Weinfuss
Los Angeles Rams
For the Rams' vaunted pass rush to live up to its potential, defensive end Robert Quinn needs to return to the dominant form that had him in the discussion among the league's top pass-rushers. Quinn is coming off back surgery that kept him out of eight games last season, and the team is bringing him along slowly. During the offseason program, Quinn was limited in what he could do on the field but did get back to a normal weight room regimen. He also returns with a bit of a chip on his shoulder, telling me that he'd like to remind the league just how dynamic he can be. "I'm not the first to have an injury or overcome an injury but not having half the season, of course you get put into the shadows a little bit," Quinn said. "I don't need other people to motivate me. Seeing some of that stuff might somewhat add some fire, but at the end of the day, I have got my personal goals I want to achieve and that would turn the doubters into believers." -- Nick Wagoner
San Francisco 49ers
Biggest injury question mark in Santa Clara, thy name is Colin Kaepernick. With an exclamation point! At his zenith, which was a mere two offseasons ago, Kaepernick was dubbed as one of the greatest quarterbacks in league history. After three surgeries -- left shoulder, right thumb, left knee -- a trade request that fell on deaf ears and the hiring of a new coach in Chip Kelly, the dual-threat signal-caller is far behind Blaine Gabbert in the starting QB competition. -- Paul Gutierrez
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks are counting on Thomas Rawls to carry the load in 2016, but the running back is recovering from a fractured ankle injury that included ligament damage and ended his rookie season in December. Rawls said he expects to be ready for training camp, but the team has said it has no intentions of rushing him back. The goal is for Rawls to be ready to go in Week 1, and every indication from Pete Carroll suggests that the running back will be on the field for the opener. -- Sheil Kapadia
NFC WEST
Arizona Cardinals
Safety Tyrann Mathieu is rehabbing his second ACL injury in three seasons. He tore it in Week 15 last season, missing the final two games of the regular season and the Cardinals' run to the NFC Championship game. While this injury isn't as complex as his first knee injury, which included his ACL and LCL, it's still No. 2 for the Honey Badger during his NFL career. This raises concern about his durability and puts the Cardinals in the precarious position of handling his return the right way. They don't want to push Mathieu to return too early, but they need him on the field as soon as possible in 2016 to make a run at Super Bowl LI. -- Josh Weinfuss
Los Angeles Rams
For the Rams' vaunted pass rush to live up to its potential, defensive end Robert Quinn needs to return to the dominant form that had him in the discussion among the league's top pass-rushers. Quinn is coming off back surgery that kept him out of eight games last season, and the team is bringing him along slowly. During the offseason program, Quinn was limited in what he could do on the field but did get back to a normal weight room regimen. He also returns with a bit of a chip on his shoulder, telling me that he'd like to remind the league just how dynamic he can be. "I'm not the first to have an injury or overcome an injury but not having half the season, of course you get put into the shadows a little bit," Quinn said. "I don't need other people to motivate me. Seeing some of that stuff might somewhat add some fire, but at the end of the day, I have got my personal goals I want to achieve and that would turn the doubters into believers." -- Nick Wagoner
San Francisco 49ers
Biggest injury question mark in Santa Clara, thy name is Colin Kaepernick. With an exclamation point! At his zenith, which was a mere two offseasons ago, Kaepernick was dubbed as one of the greatest quarterbacks in league history. After three surgeries -- left shoulder, right thumb, left knee -- a trade request that fell on deaf ears and the hiring of a new coach in Chip Kelly, the dual-threat signal-caller is far behind Blaine Gabbert in the starting QB competition. -- Paul Gutierrez
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks are counting on Thomas Rawls to carry the load in 2016, but the running back is recovering from a fractured ankle injury that included ligament damage and ended his rookie season in December. Rawls said he expects to be ready for training camp, but the team has said it has no intentions of rushing him back. The goal is for Rawls to be ready to go in Week 1, and every indication from Pete Carroll suggests that the running back will be on the field for the opener. -- Sheil Kapadia
