NFC South gearing up for another close fight

Article by Matt King

 

We’re not far removed from the NFL draft, but equally looking forward to the 2015 NFL season and all four teams in the NFC South improved. In this edition I will look at what changes they made and how this may help [or hinder] them to get [back] to the post season. I will start with the Carolina Panthers [via stats sourced at NFL.com].

The Panthers largely under performed last season and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them bounce back and end up with a winning record. Despite a rocky season from Cam Newton, down the stretch he was able to guide them into the playoffs, although with the state of the NFC South last season, it would have been harder to miss them. Newton should be healthier this time around, and with a season under him already, Kelvin Benjamin should light the league up once more and joined with the experience of Jerricho Cotchery you shouldn’t rule out the Panthers scoring a tonne of points this year, and with deep defensive personnel, and Luke Kuechly getting better every year and registering 81 defensive stops in 2014, will look to push towards 100 and keep the score down for the Panthers. With Tre Boston [4^th round 2014 draft] and Bene Benwikere [5^th round 2014 draft] now fully settled into the rigours of the NFL, and the hard hitting South Division, the Panthers are arguably the favourites to win this division before a ball has even been kicked [or thrown].

 

Next up, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Buccs will be going to war with hopefully a better season with clarity regarding game plans and personnel [Tedford’s health issues]. They invested heavily in the draft in areas of need, but still have one of the worse squad depths in the NFL. Rookie QB, Jameis Winston. [The first overall pick in the draft] is likely to be the starting QB for Tampa. Winston will have a really good WR duo core with Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson [who nearly got traded last season], although rushing the football could prove a problem in the interim with a thin RB staff headed [just] by Charles Sims. Rookie will play a huge role with offensive line members Donavan Smith and Ali Marpet likely to head the line. Outside of these names, the Buccs don’t have many household names, that fans of the NFL will be able to quote in discussions such as Walter Payton, The Fridge, Joe Montana, Vince Lombardi, Lawrence Taylor etc…, but that doesn’t mean they won’t have in a few seasons’. This is clearly another season of transition for the Buccs but they should at the very least improve on their 2014 win total.

Now for a look at New Orleans.

Drew Brees hasn’t always been a model of consistency since entering the league] after being drafted in the 2^nd round of the 2001 draft] although it took an injury and a new team to tap into his 2^nd round potential. In 2006 he signed for the Saints as a Free Agent and hasn’t been away from the pro bowl since. RB duo Mark Ingram [1^st round, 2011] and CJ Spiller [1^st round 2010] could be a force as the season goes on, and both are well adjusted to the league now. Question marks could [and probably will] be asked about the Saints refusal to replace Jimmy Graham in the draft, or via trade and will hope Josh Hill [undrafted, 2013] will be able to contribute. Round 7 pick in the 2010 draft Zach Strief’s role could be up in the air slightly, with the Saints picking [at 13 overall] Andrus Peat and at this point, seem unlikely to want to sit him after investing with a high priority pick in round 1. At this point, it seems likely that the Saints could finish anywhere in the division, but it’s still early for them and perhaps pre-season games might tell us more about New Orleans.

Finally, a look at the Atlanta Falcons.

It’s been all change in the off season so far with the Falcons, and new Head Coach and OC could be the signing[s] off the draft season. Dan Quinn [HC] helped guide the Seahawks within half a yard of back to back titles [as the defensive Co-ordinator] and Kyle Shanahan [OC] with various experiences at different positions. The Falcons should have more impetus with Dan Quinn probably able to manage the clock when up in the 4^th quarter [that would help]. There won’t be too much to do in terms of finding talent, as they had a promising team that failed to deliver in 2014, but stats suggest they weren’t as bad as their record suggests and Matt Ryan was one of the top performing QBs for fantasy teams [although on mine he didn’t get a ring, much like real life] (but for that I blame the Colts D line) but more on that in a different piece. 22 Year old Tevin Coleman is likely to take over the RB role from Steven Jackson who is now a FA and went for 707 yards from 190 carries at an average of 3.7 yards per carry and finishing the year with 6 TDs. This was the second straight season [excluding his rookie year] he failed to break 1000 yards and was released back in February of this year. The WR core remains largely the same with Julio Jones fronting it and Round 4 draftee Justin Hardy at WR3. Hardy was drafted in the same round this year as Freeman was in 2014 [Round 4] and the Falcons certainly have enough pieces to be a real force in the next few years [similar to the Saints up to 2014].

 

A lot of football will be played between now and December and as the weeks roll by Rosters will look different, or the same come the playoffs, and the NFC south could be one of the most competitive again following recent drafting efforts by all clubs and it will be interesting to see which clubs drafting / off season reshaping proves best. It’s unlikely the Buccs will be as bad again as they were in their horrendous 2-14 2014 season, and the Falcons should at least be playing .500 football which could prove the Panthers and Saints fighting it out for the top spot once again in 2015.