The NFC South was by far the worst division in football last season and was somewhat of an embarrassment. They were the only division to have a team win it that had a record below .500. It was a tight race between every team, because there wasn’t a single team that ran away with it. I feel that things will be different this season. Here are my predictions.

Atlanta Falcons:

Key Additions: Dan Quinn (head coach), Leonard Hankerson, Vic Beasley (1st round draft pick), Jalen Collins (2nd round draft pick)

Key Losses: Zeke Motta, Steven Jackson

The Falcons finished third in the NFC South last season, and many thought they would do better. With stars like Matt Ryan and Julio Jones, their offense should have produced more. They finished 12th overall in total points last season which isn’t terrible, but for the weapons they have it was below expectations. They finished 24th overall in rushing, which will have to improve if Atlanta wants any shot of taking this division. I see Beasley having a good rookie year and having a huge impact on Atlanta’s front seven. The running game is still an issue, however, and I see it being Atlanta’s Achilles heel.

Record: 6-10

Carolina Panthers:

Key Additions: Greg Olsen (extension), Shaq Thompson (first round draft Pick), Devin Funchess (second round draft pick), Cam Newton (extension), Chris Houston

Key Losses: Thomas DeCoud, Derek Dennis, Horace Miller

The Panthers found themselves winning the NFC South last season for the fourth time, which is the most by any team in the division. They were able to beat out the Saints for the division title by 1/2 game.

Newton was injured for a few weeks because of his car accident, but the Panthers survived and they showed they had a decent passing game with tight end Greg Olsen and their rookie wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin, who went for just over 1,000 yards and 9 touchdowns. Benjamin shows a lot of promise, and with the draft pick of wide receiver Devin Funchess, the Panthers added some size to Newton’s arsenal. Even with the new offensive additions, I’m not totally sold on Carolina being a legit Super Bowl contender, but I do have them winning the division again.

Record: 10-6

New Orleans Saints:

Key Additions: Andrus Peat (firsts round draft pick), Stephone Anthony (second round draft pick), Brandon Browner, C.J Spiller, Max Unger

Key Losses: Jimmy Graham, Kenny Stills, Ben Grubbs, Junior Gallette,

I can hear all of Saints nation screaming at me “what you don’t have them winning it all!?” No I don’t and quite frankly, I don’t think a lot of other people do either. The fact of the matter is the era of Saints dominance has ended. With quarterback Drew Brees in the last year of his contract and soon to be 36 years old, along with trading arguably the NFL’s best tight end in Jimmy Graham, the Saints may be starting to rebuild. Without Stills and Graham, the seasoned Brees doesn’t have a good group of weapons anymore. However, simply because of the fact they still have Brees, I don’t think that the Saints will drop the ball entirely and be a joke, I’m just saying it will be another down year for Who Dat nation.

Record: 5-11

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:

Key Additions: Jameis Winston (first round pick), George Johnson

Key Losses: Josh McCown, Dashon Goldson, C.J Wilson

Let’s face it, Tampa Bay has been pretty bad for a while now. Don’t worry though Bucs fans, your hero is here: Famous Jameis. Tampa took Winston first overall this year in the draft and many expect him to be Tampa’s quarterback for years to come, but not so fast. I don’t think Winston is bad or overrated, in fact I think he will be a very good talent in the league, but I personally feel Marcus Mariota from Oregon would have been the better choice. With that being said, I see Winston somewhat turning around the Bucs this season. With receivers like Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans, it makes his job that much easier and it takes a lot of pressure off himself.

Record: 8-8