The NFC South is 3-13 at home. No one in the division has a winning record; not one team is even sitting at .500. Business as usual.
Here’s the Week 8 NFC South Review.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)
Week 8 Result: Buccaneers 16 – Falcons 0
Week 9 Opponent: Chicago Bears
The Buccaneers have strung together back-to-back wins against division rivals, and after starting 1-5, are in the thick of the NFC South title race. Tampa Bay used the same formula that worked against the Panthers on the Falcons: run through the opposing defense’s
face. That’s the perfect plan in a monsoon.
The Buccaneersamassed over 300 yards on the ground and won the game without completing a single pass. Their defense picked off Michael Penix Jr. four times and shut out the Falcons offense. We’ll see what this team is really made of when they head to Chicago next week.
Carolina Panthers (3-4)
Week 8 Result: Panthers 19 – Packers 27
Week 9 Opponent: Denver Broncos
This game was not as close as the score suggests. The Panthers are beat up right now, and it shows in every phase of the game. Bryce Young was constantly under pressure and had the jitters on the rare occasion he was kept clean. While the defense wasn’t the main issue in this game, they were lucky the Packers skill players kept dropping the ball, because they were getting torched.
That may be one reason former DC Ejiro Evero was let go after the loss. However, firing Evero won’t fix their injury issues and only adds to the chaos. Carolina is set to host the Broncos, who are licking their chops after seeing Young under pressure all game.
New Orleans Saints (2-5)
Week 8 Result: Bye Week
Week 9 Opponent: Cleveland Browns
The Saints were on the bye this week, and they needed it. Injuries have plagued the defense, and Kellen Moore’s offense needed to be unplugged and plugged back in.
Most teams sitting at 2-5 by Week 8 wouldn’t have a chance at climbing up the division rankings, but this is the NFC South. New Orleans’ season isn’t over, and they’ll look to get back on track against the Browns next week.
Atlanta Falcons (3-5)
Week 8 Result: Falcons 0 – Buccaneers 16
Week 9 Opponent: Cincinnati Bengals
Michael Penix Jr. had his worst performance as a pro, Tommy Rees called his worst game since joining the team, and Jeff Ulbrich’s defense gave up 324 yards on the ground; now that’s teamwork. Will the Falcons play in these conditions again this year? Probably not, but the team’s process in this storm was deeply flawed. They came out trying to throw the ball, which ended up going to the other team far too often.
This offensive line isn’t pulling its weight and has Bijan Robinson looking pedestrian outside of a few carries per game. The team had a chance to take the top spot in the division, and now they’re sitting in 3rd place. Atlanta heads overseas to take on the Bengals in Spain
The division is as chaotic as ever and lacks a truly “good” team, but someone has to win it. This race is setting up to be a photo finish once again.
