Ranking all four teams in the NFC South.
1 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay is a large favourite to once again win this division and it’s easy to see why. Tom Brady is back under centre after his two minute retirement and other stars like Mike Evans, Leonard Fournette, Chris Godwin, Shaq Barrett and Lavonte David are back again for the Bucs as well. This is basically the same team that almost came back to beat the eventual Super Bowl winning Rams in the NFC Divisional Round just last year, so expect them to be contenders once again. Tampa did lose Rob Gronkowski to retirement, but we still like them to stay atop the South.
2 – New Orleans Saints
The Saints have talent all over the field, but they have some pretty big question marks as well. Firstly, can Jameis Winston be the guy that New Orleans needs him to be? In his 7 games last season, he played a pretty safe brand of football, throwing just three interceptions. However, he did throw for less than 1200 yards total as well. For the Saints to be a Wild Card team, they’re going to need Jameis to be solid. The return of Michael Thomas is also a big deal in New Orleans, because if he can get his level of play back to what it was in 2019, the Saints will have two superstar weapons on their offence for Jameis to utilize.
3 – Carolina Panthers
The Panthers’ defence is starting to become a very capable unit, as they allowed the second least amount of yards against in the league last year. However, the team certainly has some question marks on the other side of the ball. With Baker Mayfield being announced as the starting quarterback, the organization needs him to be the Baker that led his team to a playoff win two years ago and not the Baker who struggled heavily through an injury last season. Then there’s Christian McCaffrey. When healthy, he may be the most dangerous running back in the entire NFL. Unfortunately, injuries have plagued his young career, as he’s only played 10 games in the past two seasons. If the Panthers stay healthy and get some breaks, they may surprise some people in the NFC. However, they’re not quite good enough to overtake the Saints on this ranking just yet.
4 – Atlanta Falcons
Their longtime quarterback is gone, their star receiver is suspended for the year, and their defence is terrible. The Falcons could be in for a tough season, but they still have some reasons to be excited for the future. Kyle Pitts is an absolute stud at tight end, Marcus Mariota has looked solid in the time he’s been out there in the preseason, and Drake London could be the next big thing at WR. On defence, they need to do a better job at getting to the quarterback this season to help out the secondary. Last year, the Falcons were last in the league by 11 with only 18 sacks in 17 games. Simply not good enough.
