LogFAQs > #968617298

NFC South

1. San Juan Orcas
2. Atlanta Falcons
3. Carolina Panthers
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Orcas bring back all 11 starters from the #4 defense a season ago. There's no reason to suspect they will not have a great defense again this season even with the season-ending injury to OLB Darius Leonard. The offense is where they made a bunch of changes. While injuries were clearly a major or even the main factor, they were a league average offense last season. The Orcas made a bunch of sweeping changes. Reliable #2 WR Demaryius Thomas was shipped out and replaced with boom-or-bust rental Ted Ginn. Rookie sensation TE Joel Albright takes over for David Njoku. The right side of the OL was replaced by a pair of elite performers who better fit the offense. HB Nyheim Hines was taken with the 15th pick to give the term a bunch better backup option if Knowshon Moreno goes down. QB Jameis Winston won the job after the preseason. The schedule is not going to be easy, but with this basically being a two-team race for the division, they still have great odds of making the playoffs in some capacity.

Due to a really stupid tiebreaker rule, the Falcons ended up missing the playoffs. Ultimately though, they should have played better down the stretch after being the final unbeaten team in the NFC, or maybe it was the entire NFL. This is a pretty great offense. QB Patrick Mahomes has been one of the few very good QBs that have come up through recent drafts, HB David Johnson is either a star or so close to being one. The OL will miss G Aaron Merz, but the trio of LG Willie Colon, C Russell Bodine, and RT Tony Uogh is one of the best in the league. WR Allen Hurns, who has done very well as a #1 and #2, was brought in as a free agent. The defense may look a little paltry in each area, but the front seven at least consistently plays above their talent, and SS Su'a Cravens was one of the best free agent signings last offseason. They tend to have poor injury luck, but it isn't too bad so far. As long as some of their lesser starters that are far below league average don't become huge liabilities, the Falcons can compete for the division and certainly a wild card.

The Panthers had a curious offseason. Among their moves, they let an elite OT in Andrew Whitworth walk, they cut a career 4.3 YPC runner in LeSean McCoy in favor of a career 3.7 YPC runner in Tevin Coleman, and they signed DE Stephon Tuitt to a nearly $9 mil AAV deal who in 64 career starts has something like 54 tackles and 24 sacks. They might have more talent this season, but they also brought in a bunch of players who do not perform well or at least are nowhere close to being worth their price tag. This has been a slow rebuilding process for the Panthers after going 14-34 the past three seasons. Had they chosen different players, I would feel better about their chances for improvement this season even with a rather challenging schedule. If QB Lamar Jackson, who was a very low-impact game manager as a rookie, shows considerable improvement this season, then they might be in a good position to be a playoff contender next season as they do have some great players already on the roster who should still be on the team next year.

Former #1 overall pick QB Trevor Largent "took a break" in his sophomore season as QB Bobby Reid had a comback year by lifting up a sagging offense and more importantly helping the OL develop. There are a lot of young and unproven offensive skill position players starting though, which usually doesn't bode well in the present. It seems likely that the Bucs offense will take a step back with a pocket QB in place and long-time stud HB Matt Forte no longer with the team. The defense may look to have low talent on paper, and they probably won't be great as a whole if I'm being honest, but like the Falcons, the individuals have a consistent history of playing above their talent. The front seven is actually pretty great. It's the secondary that has some issues with a revolving door of merely adequate FSs and a perennially thin CB group. The Bucs have a lot of changes in the secondary again with new starters at #2 CB, FS, and SS. If they all gel and perform much better than expected, the Bucs are a very dark horse playoff contender. The more likely scenario is that this is another developmental year in the rebuild.