NFL Predictions by Division: NFC South

Atlanta Falcons

I don’t know if there’s a single person who predicted divisions this year and didn’t have Atlanta winning the NFC South. The division is just too easy. And to make matters better for the Falcons, they have the easiest schedule in the NFL by a mile. At Philadelphia and home against KC in Week 2 and 3 are hard to start with but then the rest of the year they play scrubs. Even home against Dallas in Week 9 isn’t crazy difficult given where we project the Cowboys this year.

The Falcons clearly believe they’re a good enough team to make a deep run this year. They signed Kirk Cousins to a four-year deal. They traded for Justin Simmons and Matthew Judon last week. I wish they would’ve grabbed another defensive piece in the first round of the draft, but we can’t expect the GM to make every move a smart one.

I’m eager to see how they use Pitts, London and Robinson this year. We can all agree none of those players were used to their full potential in the offensive scheme. Part of that was the quarterback play. A lot of it was not getting their stars in the right position. I think Kirk will be able to facilitate much better and given how easy their schedule is, they should be a top 10 offense.

Key Additions
QB Kirk Cousins
S Justin Simmons

Key Losses
None of note

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Will Baker Mayfield be the next Geno Smith, or will he pick up where he left off in 2023? I mentioned Geno’s terrible 2023 after Dave Canales left and now Mayfield is in the same boat. Canales left in the offseason to be the head coach of the Carolina Panthers. I want Baker to succeed. He’s a fun guy to watch and root for ever since he left Cleveland. I wouldn’t be shocked if he reverted back to those dark days though.

Tampa has a middle of the road defense, offensive line and great receivers. What they still don’t have is a running back. White will again spearhead this operation. Not something Bucs fans are looking forward to watching. His YPC was an abysmal 3.6 in 2023. White does have some competition in the backfield. Irving and Tucker have showed promise in the preseason. If one of them can have a coming out party in 2024, the Buccaneers would be one step closer to repeating as division champs.

Key Additions
S Jordan Whitehead

Key Losses
ED Shaquil Barrett

New Orleans Saints

When are the Saints going to blow up this roster? How long are Saints fans going to stand by and let this garbage product come out on the field and cheer? New Orleans used to be a good football brand. When they came on the TV you knew you were going to see some well executed offense and some smash mouth defense. Now, there are maybe 1-2 good players and a bunch of hacks on this roster.

The best player on this team is a linebacker if that tells you anything. Outside of Davis, they don’t have anyone on the defensive line who scares me. I respect Jordan and all that he’s done in the league, but he’s 35 years old. He’s slowly been worse each year since he turned 30. I don’t expect him to somehow turn back the clock.

The offensive side of the ball isn’t much better. Michael Thomas is finally gone, so we can quit saying “This thing might turn around as soon as he’s on the field”. He was never on the field. It was always a pipe dream. Alvin Kamara showed clear signs last year the elusiveness tank is almost empty. Derek Carr hasn’t been the same since he left Las Vegas. There is not one thing about this team that excites me and if they were playing in any other division, they might potentially be the favorite for worst record in the league.

Key Additions
DE Chase Young

Key Losses
CB Isaac Yiadom
DT Malcom Roach

Carolina Panthers

Now, let’s talk about a team that has promise. If you’ve read all the division blogs so far (and the Buccaneers first paragraph) you know I love what Dave Caneles has done for quarterbacks recently. Guess who won the Most Improved Player award in 2022 and 2023. Geno Smith and Baker Mayfield. It’s now Bryce Young’s turn.

This team is going to look totally different in 2024. Robert Hunt is an elite guard. Clowney is a great pass rusher. Diontae Johnson (if healthy) can take a lot of the usage off Adam Thielen. They drafted Xavier Legette. A project wide receiver who has massive upside. This team only won 2 games last year. We only have them at 5-12. That’s still a large step in the right direction. 2024 might not be their year, but I’m excited for 2025. They feel like they’re 2-3 moves away from becoming a much more competitive NFL team.

Key Additions
ED Jadeveon Clowney
G Robert Hunt

Key Losses
ED Brian Burns