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Atlanta Falcons: Predicting the NFC South in 2016

By Andy Hendricks

Dec 13, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Justin Hardy (16) is tackled by Carolina Panthers cornerback Josh Norman (24) during the second half at Bank of America Stadium. The Carolina Panthers remain undefeated with a 38-0 win over Atlanta Falcons. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 13, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Justin Hardy (16) is tackled by Carolina Panthers cornerback Josh Norman (24) during the second half at Bank of America Stadium. The Carolina Panthers remain undefeated with a 38-0 win over Atlanta Falcons. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports /
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On the way to a Super Bowl appearance, the Carolina Panthers won the NFC South for their third straight year.

Despite the Atlanta Falcons handing the Panthers their lone loss of the 2015 regular season, the Falcons performed poorly against division opponents. They were swept by fierce rivals New Orleans Saints, even though the Saints owned the worst defense in the league.

Also, Atlanta lost two close games to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and were blown out in Carolina, completing the picture of a team failing to keep up with their division. This is the polar opposite of the 2014 Falcons season, in which Atlanta sported a 5-1 division record, but only won one game outside of the NFC South.

However, the strong start that the Falcons had allowed the team to still finish second in the division.

The 2015 NFC South stacked up like this:

  1. Carolina Panthers 15-1 (5-1)
  2. Atlanta Falcons 8-8 (1-5)
  3. New Orleans Saints 7-9 (3-3)
  4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 6-10 (3-3)

Looking forward to the 2016 season, most analysts see the Panthers remaining on top of the NFC South. The Saints do not have a stable defense, and often find themselves in offensive shootouts. The Buccaneers showed improvement last year, but Jameis Winston is still developing and Mike Evans is working on his drop problem. The Falcons are still finding their groove under the new coaching staff, particularly the offense under OC Kyle Shanahan.

With the state of the other three teams in mind, anyone can see that the NFC South is the Panther’s division to lose. Perhaps the Falcons or Saints could upstage them, but it seems like a Herculean task.

The Panthers begin their season with a Super Bowl Rematch in Denver. After that, they have a fairly easy schedule until Week 8, where they play the Cardinals at home coming off a bye week, and later at Week 13, where they travel to Seattle. But aside from those three games, the Panthers shouldn’t have any trouble if they perform like they did last season.

The Saints, or as I prefer to call them: The ‘Aints, get the benefit of playing Denver and Seattle at home, but travel to Arizona in Week 15. An under the radar tough game for the Saints could be when they travel to Kansas City in Week 7, where they will play in the very loud Arrowhead stadium. New Orleans also has a very early bye week, Week 5, which means fatigue could be a factor late in the season.

The Buccaneers, similar to the Saints, will play Denver and Seattle at home, but will travel to Arizona and Kansas City. Jameis Winston will be playing some very tough defenses in his second year, and former Falcons head coach Mike Smith has the task of improving the Tampa Bay defense as the defensive coordinator.

The Falcons have one of the toughest schedules of the 2016 season before them. Early in the season, the Dirty Birds will travel to the reigning champs, Denver, and then to Seattle in back to back games. They will also play Green Bay, Kansas City, and Arizona at home.

In order to be successful, the offense must get more consistent from last season and eliminate the discouraging red zone turnovers. Also, it is imperative that something resembling a pass rush develops on the defensive line. Young players like Vic Beasley and rookie Keanu Neal must step up as play makers and veterans like Jonathan Babineaux and Desmond Trufant must continue their consistency for the defense to be able to keep the Falcons in games on their difficult schedule.

With all that said and the schedules for the four teams in the NFC South in mind, it’s easy to make a prediction for who wins the division next season. Unfortunately, the Panthers will more than likely remain on top and earn another playoff berth.

However, after the Panthers, it’s difficult to predict how the NFC South will stack up. All of the other three teams in the division have the potential to get their act together, earn second place, and fight for a wild-card spot. But which one?

Divisions are impossible to perfectly predict, especially a close one like the NFC South, and no one knows how it’ll end up. But for mine and your amusement, I’ve laid out a prediction that will inevitably be proven wrong by the end of next season.

  1. Carolina Panthers 12-4 (5-1)
  2. Atlanta Falcons 9-7 (3-3)
  3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 8-8 (3-3)
  4. New Orleans Saints 6-10 (1-5)

Hopefully the Falcons can perform better than expected, but the only thing that is certain is that the NFC South will be a fun division to watch this upcoming season.

Next: Julio Jones: Future league MVP?

Let me hear your predictions in the comments below.

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