This season, we’ve decided to use one word (some real, some made up) to describe the mindset, outlook or position that each team is in heading into 2016.
Drop your comments and your prediction for the NFC South below!
Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Details
The Bucs seemingly gave away games repeatedly in 2015. They were also burned multiple times by their special teams unit, particularly the kicking game. They attempted to rectify this by reaching for Florida State kicker Roberto Aguayo in the second round of the draft. The results…mixed thus far. Tampa also took Vernon Hargreaves III in round one to help sure up a secondary that yielded 31 pass TDs last year, tied for fifth worst in the league. Rookie pass rusher Noah Spence impressed in the preseason, making for a compelling rookie class in Central Florida.
New coach Dirk Koetter’s task is to refine Jameis Winston’s decision making and clean up the little things that prevented Tampa from making the jump last season. Lovie Smith was surprisingly ousted after the season; Koetter’s hiring highlights a move to a more offensive-minded team. Third-year flanker Mike Evans is poised for a monster campaign. Bold Prediction Alert: Evans finishes the season in the top five in receiving yards and touchdowns.
The Bucs will need to focus on starting and finishing the season strong. Sure, it sounds like an odd goal— every team should strive for this. But Tampa’s first five games are at Atlanta (divisional opponent), at Arizona (NFC runner-up), and home to L.A. (scrappy team with a tough D and star tailback), Denver (Super Bowl champs) and Carolina (NFC champs). That’s a tough draw. They’ve also ended each of the last five seasons on a horrendous skid, something losing teams tend to do.
2011: Lost their last 10 games.
2012: Lost five of final six games.
2013: Lost four of final five games.
2014: Lost their last 6 games.
2015: Lost five of final six games.
Attention to detail will turn this team from young squad with potential to one that can make real noise in the NFC. It begins with tightening up their special teams and taking care of the football.
Atlanta Falcons- OVO
Once the class of the division, the Falcons haven’t been the same since they lost the NFC Championship Game to the 49ers at home in the final seconds in January 2013. A couple of forgettable Mike Smith seasons begat the arrival of Dan Quinn, who went 8-8 in his first season at the helm. Running back Devonta Freeman came from nowhere and had a monsters 2015 season, to accompany Julio Jones’ consistent awesomeness. Quinn’s presence aided the defense, which shut down Cam Newton in Week 15, handing Carolina their only L last season. The trouble for Atlanta is hardly any major acquisitions were made via draft or free agency this offseason. Perhaps the organization spent too much time and energy (not money though) on the Mercedes-Benz Stadium acquisition, which they’ll be moving into at the start of next season.
Sidebar: Is it possible for Mercedes to have naming rights to two different team’s stadiums in the same division? Should the Saints be at all pissed about this??
Right now the Falcons sort of feel like they’re just existing in the NFC. Not bottoming out, but not good enough to make a real run either. The usage of “OVO” to describe this Falcons mind frame is twofold: For one, Drake loves Atlanta. More importantly, ATL’s season will be defined in October when they square up with the Panthers, Broncos, Seahawks and Packers in four of the five Sunday’s of the month. A 3-2 finish or better means the playoffs might be within reach. A 2-3 record or worse means another average season is on the horizon.
October: It’s not just for owls anymore.
New Orleans Saints- Crossroads
It’s universally believed that to succeed in football, you need a good head coach and a good quarterback, and those two individuals must move in lockstep at all times. Few teams are fortunate enough to have all of this, and it’s no coincidence those teams are consistently successful.
The Saints won a championship with Sean Payton and Drew Brees, but that was nearly seven years ago. How long can this duo live off of success from years past? Even the Giants fired Tom Coughlin last year, and he and Eli Manning won two titles together. The Saints have been mediocre for what feels like a long while, finishing 7-9 three of the last four seasons. The defense will improve because Rob Ryan is gone, but the personnel still doesn’t appear to be there. Tight end Coby Fleener and linebacker James Laurinaitis were the major offseason additions via free agency. NOLA also drafted defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, and scored two players from the ultra-talented Ohio State super team from the past two years— receiver Michael Thomas (aka “Lil Keyshawn”) and safety Vonn Bell.
The Saints look to be moving in the right direction, but they went 0-4 in preseason play. And as we’ve learned, that record is more telling than we may have previously thought.
This summer New Orleans said goodbye to Marques Colston, the franchise’s all-time leading receiver. Who’s to say the Saints aren’t another 7-9 (or worse) season away from wholesale change to the coach and QB as well?
The year 2016 may be Brees and Payton’s last stand.
Carolina Panthers- Pressure
Do you remember the Panthers actually went 15-1 last year? Here’s a look at the seven teams in NFL history that won at least 15 regular season games:
Here’s a look at what the previous six teams did the following year:
’85 49ers: Lost in the Wild Card Round
’86 Bears: Lost in the Divisional Round
’99 Vikings: Lost in the Divisional Round
’05 Steelers: Won Super Bowl
’08 Patriots: Missed Playoffs
’12 Packers: Lost in the Divisional Round
Only the Steelers even made the conference championship game the following year. We’ve discussed the difficulty of scaling the seemingly un-scaleable mountain that is reaching the Super Bowl in consecutive or three straight years. We’ve even used it as grounds to make picks, as last season we noted the Seattle Seahawks would not return to a third straight Super Bowl. While Carolina isn’t going for three, they are shooting for their second Super Bowl appearance in as many years. But we also know teams that lose in the Super Bowl have a history of throwing up an absolute clunker the following year. Again, the last team to lose the Super Bowl only to reach it again the following year was the Buffalo Bills of the early ’90s. The last team to lose on Super Sunday that won it the following year was the Miami Dolphins in 1973.
These history lessons are not a death sentence, but they do illustrate the hardships involved with bouncing back from football’s most difficult defeat. After a year of dancing and dominating, Cam Newton backed away from a fumbled snap in the Super Bowl. And after a year of dedicated defiance, Cam has appeared to back away from the raging Blackness that endeared him to African-Americans around the country. He ducked taking a stance on the Colin Kaepernick situation; he caught heat for his comments to GQ. One could argue he’s put away controversial things to focus solely on football. Another could say Newton is abstaining from racial issues to better his image, which is sort of a twisted way of not focusing on football. Regardless, the Panthers will once again be very good, but will they be able to replicate the magic?
Josh Norman bounced for more money, while Charles Tillman retired. Consequently, the secondary is sorely lacking in talent and experience. The Carolina defensive line however is one of the elite units in football, and Luke Kuechly may literally be the best player in the NFL. Like, literally. Kelvin Benjamin’s return should enhance the NFL’s top offense from a year ago, although something about 2015’s offensive performance felt incredibly fluky.
When you add it all up, the Panthers should win the NFC South for the fourth straight year— they’ve perfected a formula that works for them. But football isn’t like basketball. You don’t seems inching closer year after year to a championship, struggling through repeated heartbreak, only to overcome those obstacles and claim victory. In football, you typically only get one or two cracks at it. That’s it.
Maybe the window of this skilled Panthers team closed before we even realized it was already starting to shut. Maybe Super Bowl 50 was their last best shot.
Maybe.
Justin’s NFC South Champ: Carolina Panthers
Kenny’s NFC South Champ: Carolina Panthers
Anthony’s NFC South Champ: Carolina Panthers