Last season Tampa Bay won the NFC South with an 8-9 record. Â Brady has now officially retired and all four teams will feature a new quarterback under center. The Saints brought in Derek Carr as a veteran quarterback, but that doesn’t equate to success. None of us would be surprised if the Saints finished last and Panthers number one pick Bryce Young leads Carolina to a division title. Or if Atlanta becomes an offensive powerhouse led by Ridder, Pitts, and potential rookie of the year candidate Bijan Robinson. All four teams can make a case as to why they will win the division.
New Orleans Saints
The Saints are the most talented and experienced team by far in the division. After failing to find a true heir to Drew Brees, the team believes they have secured their franchise, hopefully, quarterback Derek Carr. Carr is the definition of mediocre. We know he’s not a franchise-altering quarterback, but he’s also serviceable if surrounded by the right talent. The team signed former tight end Jimmy Graham to a one-year deal Jimmy Graham? In a surprising offseason, this might be one of the biggest surprises. Jimmy Graham? In a surprising offseason, this might be one of the biggest surprises.
The Saints also signed running back Jamaal Williams which is considered an underrated move despite Williams scoring the most rushing TDs in back-to-back seasons, but that’s the current state of the running back market. The Saints may need Williams to step up in the case that Alvin Kamara is forced to miss time. Kamara may face suspension stemming from his arrest during  Pro Bowl weekend in Las Vegas. Kamara and Williams could be one of the best- rushing duos in the league if everything goes right.
Chris Olave is coming off a huge rookie season, while hopefully, Michael Thomas can stay healthy the entire season. Thomas has missed forty of the fifty games of the last three seasons so it’s no guarantee that will he be out there every week. Despite Carr not having a good season, Davante Adams was still one of the best receivers in the league last season, which should excite New Orleans fans for Olave’s second season.
The defense was not the issue for the team’s struggles last season so it’s a matter of if this offense will click with a lot of new names.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
It looks like Tom Brady is really retired this time around. Even though the Bucs won the division they weren’t that good of a team. They didn’t even have a winning record. It’s laughable they got to host a playoff game. Last year the team couldn’t run the ball; they had just five rushing touchdowns last season. Their lack of ability to run the ball could continue to be a problem with the team not addressing the glaring need to add a top back.
In Brady’s absence, Baker Mayfield will be under center this season. It was never going to be easy to be the guy after Brady. This is a big year for Mayfield who needs to prove he is still capable of being a starter in the league. The Bucs are his third team since last year. He still has Mike Evans and Chris Godwin so hope isn’t lost in Tampa Bay
Carolina Panthers
It’s a new era in Carolina with head coach Frank Reich and number one overall pick Bryce Young. The last number one overall pick by the Panthers was Cam Newton and that worked out pretty well. Carolina is coming off a year in which head coach Matt Rule got fired and RB Christian McCaffrey got traded midseason. After the season the Panthers traded  DJ Moore and many top picks to Chicago to secure the number overall pick to grab Young.
The team signed Miles Sanders who had a great season in Philadelphia. Despite emptying some of the best-skill players on the roster, hope should not be lost on the Panthers this season. There are still really good players surrounding Young including Sanders, Adam Thielen, and DJ Chark Jr.
The team started off the season losing seven of their first nine games. However, they finished the season 5-3. Reich never got a fair shot in Indianapolis having to coach aging QBs. This will be the first time we see him develop a young QB and why not the reigning Heisman winner?
Atlanta Falcons
The year of Desmond Ridder. Last year he only played in the team’s final four games, but he must have impressed the team since they did not add any big-name QBs. The team has surrounded Ridder with the talent to make his first full season as a starter more comfortable. Rookie RB Bijan Robinson by his side should help the young QB. Robinson comes into the league with some high expectations and we can expect him to have an impact early especially considering the team ranked third in rushing yards last season. He will be paired with Tyler Allgeier who rushed for over a thousand yards last season. The duo can open up Atlanta’s passing game. Â We are still waiting to see Kyle Pitts explode and after his season was cut short due to injury, this could be the year.
The Arthur Smith era in Atlanta has yet to take off. The team is coming off back-to-back 7-10 seasons and is really in need of a winning season. A lot of potentially solid pieces were added in the offseason and the Falcons could at the very least be exciting to watch. The team went out and signed several defensive free agents including Bud Dupree and Jeff Okudah.
