NFC South Preview

By: Tyler Ward and Stephen Patterson

1. New Orleans Saints (Head Coach: Sean Payton)

Key Arrivals: DE Alex Brown, LB Clint Ingram, WR Mark Bradley, CB Patrick Robinson (draft), DT Al Woods (draft)

Key Departures: DE Charles Grant, LB Mark Simoneau, RB Mike Bell, LB Scott Fujita, OL Jamar Nesbit, OL Jamaal Brown, DE Paul Spicer, QB Mark Brunell, CB Aaron Glenn

Drew Brees

SP: The Saints are coming off their first Super Bowl win in franchise history and will be attempting to become the first team to win the NFC South Division in consecutive seasons. While they have a majority of the core intact from last season, they did lose several defensive players that may hurt them this season. New Orleans will still have Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees under center, and as long as he is on the field, the sky is the limit for this team. Even on nights when the defense struggles, he is usually capable of finding enough points to still win the game. With all of the weapons he has at his disposal, it is almost impossible to stop Brees when he is focused. New Orleans will have trouble replicating the magic of last season, and I don't expect them to win quite as many games this time around. While they definitely still have the biggest home field advantage in the NFL when playing in the Superdome, they will likely struggle on the road this season a little more often this season. With that being said, Atlanta is their only real competition in the division this season, and I expect them to barely win the division for the second straight year.

- SP's Prediction: 11-5

TW: Super Bowl Champions. Of course, I have to pick them to win the division. They are definitely the team to beat this season in the NFC, especially if Drew Brees plays similarly to what he's played the last few seasons. Pierre Thomas is a very serviceable back and I think we will see him rush for over 1,000 yards this season. Marques Colston is a top 15 wide receiver in the league, and I think he will have another solid season. Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson are also quality receivers, so they could possibly factor in well for the Saints' aerial assault. Their defense will also be stellar this season, with centerpiece Jonathan Vilma running the linebackers. They did get rid of Charles Grant, but added Alex Brown after he was released from Chicago. The Saints also get a shutdown cornerback, Patrick Robinson, who many considered to be one of the best cornerbacks in this year's draft. The Saints actually got better this offseason and they could possibly repeat as Super Bowl Champions.

- TW's Prediction: 12-4

2. Atlanta Falcons (Head Coach: Mike Smith)

Key Arrivals: CB Dunta Robinson, LB Sean Witherspoon (draft), OG Mike Johnson (draft)

Key Departures: CB Tye Hill, WR Marty Booker

SP: This entire teams destiny revolves around two things: Matt Ryan and Michael Turner. If both players can't stay on the field this season, expect another disappointing finish to their year. Turner has been injury prone to say the least since becoming the team's starting back, and he will need to be healthy for all 16 games this season if this team wants to finish ahead of the Saints and guarantee themselves a playoff spot. They didn't lose any major players and made several impressive additions to their defense, especially signing Dunta Robinson to strengthen the secondary. Ryan is an excellent young QB, but when he missed time last season it definitely hurt. Chris Redman is a decent back up, but he isn't the best player in the world by any means, and often struggles in the regular season when called upon. The Falcons are coming of their first back-to-back winning seasons in franchise history, and as along their key pieces stay healthy, look for this season to be the third. Their two games against the Saints are especially important for Atlanta, and they desperately need to split the two games or win both to be in a prime position to take the division. Whether they win the division or not, however, I still think the Falcons will be around in January in the postseason.

- SP's Prediction:10-6

Roddy White

TW: I like what the Falcons have done this offseason - they haven't lost that much through free agency, but they are getting back Peria Jerry and William Moore back from injury. QB Matt Ryan is a promising star in the NFL and could be due for a solid season. Michael Turner is coming back off an injury and he will have to play well if the Falcons wants to do well. Watch out for Turner to be among the top 5 in rushing yards this season.Roddy White has shown signs of stardom the past few seasons and I think he will be elected to the Pro Bowl again this season and not to mention, they have arguably the best tight end in NFL history, Tony Gonzalez. Their defense is very young, but there is a lot of potential surrounding the team. Jerry, Moore, Curtis Lofton, rookie Sean Weatherspoon, and the newly-signed Dunta Robinson should form a solid defense for the next few seasons. Also, look out for Kroy Biermann, who could be a surprise this season. I think the Falcons could be a sleeper team to make the Super Bowl this season and may supplant the Saints for NFC South supremacy.

- TW's Prediction: 11-5

3. Carolina Panthers (Head Coach: John Fox)

Key Arrivals: QB Jimmy Clausen (draft), QB Tony Pike (draft), LB Eric Norwood (draft)

Key Departures: DE Julius Peppers, QB Jake Delhomme, QB A.J. Feeley, WR Mushin Muhammad, DT Ma'ake Kemoeatu, LB Na'il Diggs, S Chris Harris

SP: While the Panthers took several prominent QBs in the NFL Draft, Matt Moore will likely remain the team's starter heading into the season. Jimmy Clausen and Tony Pike weren't exactly terrific in their preseason debuts, but both players will likely develop into decent NFL quarterbacks. Armanti Edwards, who starred at Appalachian State and won three consecutive National Championships as the team's QB, has made the move to wide receiver and has shown a lot of promise during training camp. The team has a completely new look to it after the departures of former franchise players such as Jake Delhomme and Julius Peppers, and they are definitely still in the middle of the rebuilding process. They are a few seasons away from being able to really be a threat at making a postseason run, and it will likely be under a new coach, as John Fox is in the final year of his deal and likely won't be re-signed. I gave Carolina the benefit of the doubt that they are capable of stealing a few games when I predicted them to finish at .500, but they could certainly fall well short of that and surprise no one.

DeAngelo Williams

- SP's Prediction: 8-8

TW: Like a few other teams, the Panthers are also on the decline. As of now, the starting quarterback is Matt Moore, which could possibly be a downgrade from the recently-released Jake Delhomme. Carolina did draft Jimmy Clausen in the draft and I think we will see Clausen start at some point this season. I just don't believe Moore will get the job done and if they want to compete in the NFC North, Moore will have to outplay Drew Brees and Matt Ryan. I'm not even sure that Clausen will do better than Moore, but only time will tell. Steve Smith will return at some point, but outside of Smith, they have no wide receivers, whatsoever. I also do not like what they did defensively after parting ways with Pro Bowler Julius Peppers. Peppers is one of the best defensive lineman and in the prime of his career, so why part ways now? Makes no sense. Carolina really wasn't a player in free agency and didn't do considerably well in the draft, in my opinion. They are definitely sinking.

- TW's Prediction:7-9

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Head Coach: Raheem Morris)

Key Arrivals: WR Reggie Brown, S Sean Jones, DT Gerald McCoy (draft), WR Arrellious Benn (draft), WR Mike Williams (draft)

Key Departures: WR Antonio Bryant, S Will Allen, QB Byron Leftwich, DT Chris Hovan, WR Mark Bradley

SP: The Bucs can expect yet another disappointing season in what has become a trend over recent years. sadly for fans of the franchise, they aren't moving in the right direction at all in my opinion. They have addressed their needs, but have done so with players that aren't going to take the team anywhere. Josh Freeman is not the answer this team needed at QB and I will say with confidence that he will never lead the Buccaneers to the postseason. And their best running back, Carnell "Cadillac" Williams, can't stay healthy long enough to ever be productive on a regular basis. He has definitely a disappointment after being a Top 10 draft selection. Gerald McCoy might be the only bright spot on this entire team. Until the front office revamps the roster again in a few seasons, don't expect anything to change in Tampa anytime soon.

- SP's Prediction: 3-13

Derrick Ward

TW: The Bucs will still be in a rebuilding process. They won't do that well this season. First of all, I don't think Raheem Morris is a great coach. He's the youngest head coach in the league and I think he needs to be older if he wants to be a better coach. And I didn't like the Josh Freeman selection last year by Tampa Bay. I don't think Freeman is a quality starter and he will likely be one of the worst quarterbacks this season. There are just certain colleges that don't hve really successful NFL quarterbacks, you know?  Since 1965, Kansas State has only produced 7 quarterbacks who were selected in an NFL draft (the best being Steve Grogan) - that was ya'lls fact of the day. Anyway, their running game is also questionable and I expect Derrick Ward to have a mildly decent season - Cadillac Williams, even though he is still young, will never be a franchise running back. I think he will be a career backup, but a very good one. They drafted Arrellious Benn and Mike Williams, so that helps out the passing game, but they are still very young and have no NFL experience. Kellen Winslow should get a few passes thrown his way, as he will be a primary target for Freeman. Tampa Bay did, however, get Gerald McCoy in the draft, who I think will be a very good defensive tackle for many years to come. Other than McCoy, they really don't have much defensively. Defense wins games and I think they're going to lose a few games strictly because of their defense. They will definitely be struggling this seeason and will get another Top-5 pick in the draft.

- TW's Prediction: 3-13