The NFC West isn't quite a powerhouse, but it's not quite the punchline it was, either. Breaking down the strength of schedule for the Seahawks, Cardinals, Rams and 49ers by the 2011 records of this year's opponents provides a starting point for looking at the season ahead.

But first, a disclaimer: Basing strength-of-schedule off of last year's records is inherently problematic in a league with so much annual fluctuation. I'll be looking at that more deeply in the weeks to come heading into training camp. But as a starting point, you can see that while Seattle will face fewer opponents coming off a playoff appearance than the Cardinals, the Seahawks also have fewer opponents who had a losing record last year compared to the Cardinals and the 49ers.

	Opponent's won-loss record	Playoff opponents	Opponents with 10 or more wins	Opponents with losing record
	131-125 (.511)	6	6	7
	134-122 (.523)	5	5	7
	125-131 (.488)	5	4	7
	129-127 (.503)	5	5	6