NFC South 2025 preview
By: Jake Rajala
The NFC South has been dominated by one team recently: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs have won the division in each of the last four seasons! With that said, I’m going to unfold the outlook for each team and project if a team not by the name of Tampa Bay could win the division.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bucs have one of the best front sevens in football. Well, it somehow got better this offseason, as they inked Haason Reddick. The former Temple stud recorded 16 sacks in 2022 and 11 sacks in 2023. The Bucs also drafted WR Emeka Egbuka 19th overall. The Bucs arguably have a Top-3 WR group with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Egbuka.
New Orleans Saints
The Saints welcomed reigning Super Bowl Champion, Kellen Moore, as their head coach. The Saints are being led out by Spencer Rattler. He went 0-6 last season, but he has looked more comfortable with the offense this offseason. The Saints also welcomed Brandon Staley as their DC. I love their draft pick of left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr, too. He also allows Taliese Fuaga to move to RT, where he is more comfortable.
Atlanta Falcons
It’s time. The Falcons draft pick of Michael Penix Jr. has looked wise. Penix will start over Kirk Cousins in Week 1. He will have Bijan Robinson in his back pocket. Adam Schefter picked Robinson with his first pick in fantasy. I am a little concerned about the Falcons front seven, however. They have Leonard Floyd and Kaden Elliss and they can both get after the passer. However, they are missing a thumper at LB against the run.
Carolina Panthers
I believe the Carolina Panthers are one of the most underrated NFC squads. Bryce Young unleashed 10 touchdowns in his past three games. They traded away Thielen, but they still have Tetairoa McMillan, Xavier Legette, and Hunter Renrow. I don’t love that they cut Jadeveon Clowney on defense. I’d like to see them bring back Stephon Gilmore to join Jaycee Horn.
If I had to pick an NFC South winner at this very early point in 2025, I’d still roll with the Bucs. Baker Mayfield is playing at a very high level, and their defense is arguably better than last season. The other QBs in the division are still very young.
Leave a Reply