NFC South outlook
By: Jake Rajala
The NFC South is heating up heading into Week 6. We’re seeing two very competitive teams in the Carolina Panthers and the Atlanta Falcons. The other two teams have suffered from injuries and have questionable coaching. With that said, I’m going to talk about the NFC South right now.
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson has turned up the heat on everyone in the building. She won’t accept the standard of losing and being 1-4. The Saints QB Tyler Shough looks like the 2025 version of Spencer Rattler, which isn’t good. The Saints are also missing a lot of firepower. Travis Etienne and Jordyn Tyson are both injured. At least, Chase Young finally has proven being the second overall pick.
Carolina Panthers
The MVP chants have begun for Bryce Young. I want to see him string together a few wins, before he looks like a legit MVP candidate. The OPOY award will most likely go to a running back. The MVP award belongs to a QB. The Panthers are 2-2, but they blew out the Falcons by a score of 34-3 and they beat the Lions. I want to see the Panthers have a more fearless defense. They rank 26th in PPG allowed.
Atlanta Falcons
Michael Penix is hurt. Again. He does seem okay this time. The Falcons don’t have the Greatest Show on Turf, but they can score many points on anybody. They blew out the Saints by a score of 45-24. Then they lost to the Ravens in OT. Of course, Tua threw an interception in the game. If Michael was in, I believe they would have scored at least 30 points. Similar to the other NFC South teams, the Falcons need to play better defense.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bucs and Saints are tied with a 1-4 record. The Buccaneers a better excuse than the Saints, however. Baker Mayfield has been injured. Emeka Egbuka isn’t Megatron. He can’t carry the offense. I love the downhill running by Bucky Irving. He is one of the most underrated running backs in the game.
I believe the Panthers and Falcons will take a step forward with their young QBs. We once had the Saints and Panthers win 12+ games in a season. I don’t think there will be a 12 win+ team in 2026. However, I could see a couple of 9-10 win teams and that will be the Falcons and Panthers.
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