Atlanta Falcons could be alone atop the NFC South prior to Sunday’s game

As we near the halfway point — or the unofficial halfway point with the new 17-game schedule — the Atlanta Falcons are right in the middle of the race for the NFC South division crown.

As sad as the division is, a division championship is a division championship, no matter your record, and that should be the goal for the Falcons. If they end up in first place by the season’s end then it will be their first division championship in six years, the last one coming in the 2016 to 2017 NFL season.

As it currently stands right now, the Atlanta Falcons are tied for the best record in the NFC South but since the Buccaneers beat the Falcons a few weeks ago (only according to the scoreboard), they are technically the first-place team as of right now, but that could change rather quickly.

The Atlanta Falcons could have sole possession of first place  prior to taking the field vs. Panthers

Yes, you read that right, the Atlanta Falcons could sit alone at the top of the NFC South before they even play another game. Some might be wondering how that is possible, but the answer is quite simple.

On Thursday, the Baltimore Ravens will take the field in Tampa Bay to play the Buccaneers and if Lamar Jackson and the Ravens end Thursday Night Football with a win, then the Atlanta Falcons will have sole possession of first place.

This is because division rankings are based on winning percentage and since the Bucs and Falcons have identical winning percentages at .429, if the Bucs end up losing it will lower their percentage to .375, thus giving Atlanta the edge.

In the NFL, every win and loss is so crucial to your season, whether the Bucs win or lose in primetime, the Falcons must take down the Panthers to either keep pace with Tampa or to extend the division lead.

This season will come down to whether or not the Falcons can just grind out wins each week to keep pace or stay ahead of a Buccaneers team that could turn things around at some point this season.