COUNTDOWN TO NFL CAMPS

Times NFL writer Sam Farmer poses the big questions as each team readies for training camp:

NFC WEST

The biggest question lingering over every NFC West team concerns the most important position -- quarterback.

Whether it’s Matt Leinart in Arizona, Alex Smith in San Francisco, Matt Hasselbeck in Seattle or Sam Bradford in St. Louis, uncertainty abounds.

Hasselbeck is the most experienced of the bunch and got the Seahawks to the Super Bowl in the 2005 season, but his health is an issue; he was sidelined for 11 games the last two seasons. The Seahawks were unsure enough to trade a second-round pick for San Diego third-stringer Charlie Whitehurst.

Smith, the No. 1 pick in 2005, will get another chance to show that he’s worthy of the job. This will be the first time in his pro career that he’ll have the same offensive coordinators in consecutive seasons.

Leinart steps into the all-but-unfillable shoes of Kurt Warner and will quarterback an offense that’s intended to be more balanced than the pass-first scheme of recent years.

And then there’s Bradford, the No. 1 pick this year, who left Oklahoma after a junior season in which, because of shoulder injuries, he played only three games. The Rams are coming off a 1-15 season in which they scored a league-low 175 points.

Arizona

With Warner gone and Leinart at quarterback, will the Cardinals lean on Beanie Wells and try more of a Pittsburgh-style offense? How will Steve Breaston adjust to his starting role in place of Anquan Boldin? The Cardinals gave up 90 points in two playoff games -- and have lost Karlos Dansby and Antrel Rolle -- so what have they done to stabilize their defense?

Rookies and veterans: Friday, in Flagstaff, Ariz.

San Francisco

What will Michael Crabtree do in his first full season? He had no training camp last year and didn’t join the team until October, yet he played well in the second half. The 49ers drafted two offensive linemen in the first round -- tackle Anthony Davis and guard Mike Iupati. Will that work out as well as it did for the Jets, who in 2006 made the playoffs with rookie first-rounders D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold?

Rookies: Friday. Veterans: July 31, in Santa Clara, Calif.

Seattle

Now that Pete Carroll has personnel control of the NFL team he coaches, can his teams be better than the ones he coached in New England and New York? Will the Seahawks find a real No. 1 receiver, having spent gobs of Paul Allen’s money on T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Deion Branch and Nate Burleson over the last four years? Will Carroll be proved right for taking playmaking safety Earl Thomas over former USC standout Taylor Mays?

Rookies: Thursday. Veterans: Friday, in Renton, Wash.

St. Louis

Do the Rams have the luxury of taking their time and allowing Bradford to watch and learn for a while, or is the rookie going to play right away? How much punishment can Steven Jackson take as the focus of opposing defenses?

Rookies: Wednesday. Veterans: Friday, in Earth City, Mo.

NEXT: AFC West