NFC South Preview

New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees.

There probably hasn't been a team in the NFL that has gone through such an awful offseason than the New Orleans Saints endured in NFL history. It could've been much worse if QB Drew Brees didn't get the contract extension he was seeking. However, the Saints now have something great to look forward to after satisfying Brees with a new deal. It will be pretty interesting to see how the Saints play this year without Sean Payton, their head coach. What if they win the Super Bowl without him? What would be the feeling about him then? This could get very tricky.

The Atlanta Falcons have a lot of offensive firepower, led by QB Matt Ryan. Their top two receiving weapons in WR Roddy White and WR Julio Jones are #1 options on most teams. WR Harry Douglas is another solid weapon who executes in the slot very well and has become a reliable option for Ryan. Combine those three with a Hall-of-Fame tight end in TE Tony Gonzalez, and this could potentially be the most explosive offense in the NFL. Why were they not able to break out offensively last season? There may be several reasons why the best has yet to come.

Atlanta Falcons WR Roddy White.

The Falcons play in a dome, so they should be able to spread out more and throw it all over the field. However, in the past, they have insisted on using the ground game heavily with RB Michael Turner. Turner isn't a game-breaker, and as long as the Falcons continue to hand the ball to him 25 to 30 times a game, their offense will not tap into their potential. It's time to break out Ryan, for him to have a career passing season. It's possible. The team just have to commit to it. Their defense looks solid on paper as well. Their two starting corners are CB Dunta Robinson and CB Asante Samuel, Pro Bowl caliber players and their two starting defensive ends are DE John Abraham and DE Ray Edwards, a solid tandem. The only question is how much will losing LB Curtis Lofton to the Saints in free agency and releasing LB Lofa Tatupu after being injured will hurt them at that position.

Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton.

The Carolina Panthers are boasting a lot of confidence and swagger going into this season, and that is based upon QB Cam Newton's surprising success in his rookie season. Newton set records for the most rushing touchdowns for a quarterback, and he also started his career with two 400-yard passing games against the Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers. However, their defense was awful, which was probably helped out by LB Jon Beason being injured. Now that he is healthy, in addition to drafting LB Luke Kuechly of Boston College, their defense will improve.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a lot of money to spend in free agency and they did just that. They acquired WR Vincent Jackson from the San Diego Chargers, OL Carl Nicks of the Saints, and CB Eric Wright of the Detroit Lions to big deals. Jackson's acquisition provides QB Josh Freeman with a receiving threat that can make him better. The Buccaneers surprised a lot of people by going 10-6 in the 2010 season, but that was due to a very easy schedule. Last season, with a tougher schedule, they failed miserably, as it appeared they had given up on head coach Raheem Morris. Morris was fired at the end of the season, resulting in the Buccaneers tabbing Greg Schiano of Rutgers to be head coach.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Vincent
Jackson.

Even with the Saints losing two of their defensive players for a substantial amount of time due to suspension, along with their head coach and interim head coach, the Saints still have Brees. He is enough to run the ship and get the Saints to where they want to be. The competition could be interesting as the other three teams can pounce on all of the missing players and coaches. The Falcons are in the best position to seize this opportunity, but only if they throw the ball more. They need to keep defenses on their heals, and Turner, as durable and tough as he is, isn't scaring opponents.

Many people are expecting the Panthers to turn heads and make an improvement. However, that is contingent upon Newton improving as well, and he didn't necessarily show improvement this preseason. It is only preseason so there is a very good chance the Panthers did not reveal the full arsenal this preseason. We'll see what happens when they take the field for real. The Buccaneers should improve under Schiano because he will try to get the best out of all of his players. However, the connection between Freeman and Jackson may need some time to work, if it can work at all. Until then, the Buccaneers will struggle.

Predictions

Atlanta Falcons 11-5
New Orleans Saints 10-6
Carolina Panthers 8-8
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 5-11