The Tampa Bay Buccaneers continue to defy the odds, the Carolina Panthers put a beatdown on the visiting Atlanta Falcons, and the New Orleans Saints keep taking L’s. Here’s the Week 3 NFC South Review.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-0)
Week 3 Result: Buccaneers 29 – Jets 27
Week 4 Opponent: Philadelphia Eagles
In back-to-back-back weeks, Mayfield drove the Buccaneers offense down the field in the final minutes of the game for the win. Tampa Bay has faced devastating injury after devastating injury and laughed in the face of all of them.
Jason Licht deserves a ton of credit for the amount of depth all over this roster.
The Buccaneers do not look invincible, but they continue to find ways to win, and they are the clear and obvious best team in the NFC South. This week, they’ll host the top dog of the NFC East, the Eagles.
New Orleans Saints (0-3)
Week 3 Result: Saints 21 – Seahawks 44
Week 4 Opponent: Buffalo Bills
The Saints fell to 0-3 and are now the only team in the division without a win. The Seahawks scored 38 in the first half and coasted from there. Spencer Rattler hasn’t looked like the problem, but that doesn’t make him the solution for this franchise. This defense is putrid, and the special teams punting unit gave up a touchdown.
This roster was heavily criticized coming into the season, and those critiques have proven to be right thus far. New Orleans will hit the road this week and be sacrificed to Josh Allen and the Bills.
Carolina Panthers (1-2)
Week 3 Result: Panthers 30 – Cardinals 0
Week 4 Opponent: New England Patriots
The Panthers plucked the Falcons’ feathers and didn’t leave any meat on the bone on their way to the first win of the season. The offense was outgained by its opponent, but part of that was due to the sensational field position the team was starting with on most of its drives. The defense, which had looked inept in the first two weeks, dominated. Carolina needed this win to avoid a 0-3 start; it was clear they wanted it more, and they pounced on every Atlanta mistake.
The team is now 1-0 in division play and will take on Drake Maye and the New England Patriots, who are also fighting to get to .500.
Atlanta Falcons (1-2)
Week 3 Result: Falcons 0 – Panthers 30
Week 4 Opponent: Washington Commanders
Slipping to 0-2 in the division has put pressure on this team to get right quick. The Falcons loss was so bad that they fired their wide receivers coach, which has many wondering if that was really the person responsible for this team’s slow start. Michael Penix Jr. played the worst game of his young career, but the quarterback and team say they are ready to turn the page and move on to the Commanders game. There’s no telling what could come out of this one if the team doesn’t perform well, and this staff clearly feels the heat to get this offense going. Dan Quinn will do everything he can to see that that doesn’t happen.
Once again, wins and losses were split 50/50 this week. This is Tampa Bay’s division to lose, as 3/4 teams sit below .500. The Saints aren’t out of the picture, but it doesn’t look like a winning record is in the cards for them. The Panthers are 1-0 in division play, while the Falcons have now lost two of their six division matches.
