2013 NFL Recap: NFC South

My Preseason Predictions:
1.Atlanta Falcons (11-5)
2.New Orleans Saints (10-6)
3.Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-8)
4.Carolina Panthers (8-8)

Actual Standings:
1.Carolina Panthers (12-4)
2.New Orleans Saints (11-5)
3.Atlanta Falcons (4-12)
4.Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-12)

Atlanta Falcons: What the hell happened to the Atlanta Falcons in 2013? Just a year removed from an NFC Championship game appearance, the Falcons found themselves slipping to a 4-12 record and landing a top 10 pick in the 2014 draft. Just about everything that could go wrong for the Falcons did go wrong: The offensive line was abysmal, huge free agent pickup Steven Jackson flopped, Roddy White had lingering injuries that kept him from being 100% for much of the season and top playmaker Julio Jones went down for the year in Week 5. The offense just plain and simple could not put up enough points to win games. Jackson looked pretty sluggish for much of the year and failed to give this offense the rushing spark they had hoped for when they signed him this past offseason. The porous offensive line certainly didn't do Jackson any favors, but he also lacked the explosiveness that he had in St. Louis that made him a dangerous dual-threat running back  (the hamstring injury he suffered earlier in the year that kept him out for 3 games could be the reason for this.) Jackson was expected to bring the Falcons the rushing attack they lacked in 2012, but somehow they managed to get even worse. Though Jackson's failure to launch hurt the team, the injury to Jones was the biggest reason the Falcons failed in 2013. Jones was on-fire before he got hurt racking up 580 yards and 2 touchdowns in just 5 games. The Falcons may have only picked up 1 win with Jones in the lineup, but they were in every single game he appeared in thanks in large part to his play (the 4 losses with Jones in the lineup were all by 4 points or less.) Jones  brings a dynamic presence that the defense needs to keep an eye on at all times and allowed the other members of the Falcons receiving corps to get open and make plays. With Jones down and White not at fully capacity, the Falcons lacked a dominate receiver that they could lean on and it just killed their chances to pick up victories. With the offense not putting up points, the Falcons below-average defense got exposed. The Falcons defense is talented enough to hold up when the offense is lighting up the scoreboard, but when the team loses some primary weapons and isn't scoring at will, it becomes a problem. Save for a few bright spots in the secondary, The Falcons really need to overhaul their defense and pick up some fresh legs going into the 2014 season. If there was any positive to take out of 2013 for the Falcons it's that Matt Ryan is truly one of the great quarterbacks in the NFL and wide receiver Harry Douglas can put up numbers if you get him the ball. Despite terrible protection from his offensive line (no quarterback was hurried more in 2013) and injuries to both of his top wideouts, Ryan threw for over 4,500 yards, 26 TD's and completed 67% of his passes. Longtime Falcon Douglas made the most of the injuries to Jones and White to prove his worth as a wideout. Douglas gave Ryan a vertical threat he could trust. Douglas showed with his 1,000 yard+ season in 2013 that he always had the talent to succeed in the league, he just didn't really get the opportunity to until now. Ryan very well could have a career year next season with a healthy Jones, White and Douglas to throw to. The Falcons have the quarterback and offensive weapons to be a force, they just need to get the offensive line and defense to back it up.

Carolina Panthers: So how bout them Panthers? After starting out the year 1-3, The Panthers closed out the season 11-1 and pretty much took the league by storm picking up tough victories over established powerhouses such as the Saints, Patriots and 49ers. The most striking thing about The Panthers this season was their defense. Every single aspect of this defense was suffocating all season. Charles Johnson and Greg Hardy are without a doubt the best pass-rushing defensive end combo in the league, Luke Kuechly is quickly becoming one of the most well-rounded and dominant inside linebackers in the league, outside linebacker Thomas Davis played the best football of his career at age 30 and their pieced-together secondary loaded with journeyman veterans, first-time starters and undrafted rookies ended finishing 6th in the league against the pass this season. This unit doesn't get the same level of attention as the 49ers and Seahawks, but they are every bit as talented. This stifling defense was complemented by quarterback Cam Newton really coming into his own in his 3rd NFL season. Newton exuded the patience, leadership and ability to come through in tough situations that is needed to be a winning quarterback in this league. Newton battled back from mistakes and made the plays when he needed to regardless of his earlier performance in the game. Newton always had the physical tools to be something special, now he has gone through the maturation to become an elite quarterback in this league. The Panthers have assembled a great team with a ton of young talent that is just one or two offensive playmakers away from being top contenders for a Lombardi Trophy.

New Orleans Saints: Saints fans rejoice, the prodigal son has returned. As many expected, Sean Payton returned to coach the Saints this season and the team subsequently returned to the playoffs after going 7-9 and missing the playoffs during his season-long suspension in 2012. Also unsurprising Drew Brees had another spectacular season with over 5,000 yards anchored by an insane season from tight end Jimmy Graham and while the team showed flashes of potential, they still can't run the ball anywhere close to consistently. Now what was surprising for the Saints this season was the play of the defense. A year removed from allowing the most yards in NFL history, Rob Ryan takes the reigns and doesn't just make them passable, he makes them at top 10 overall unit. Defensive end Cameron Jordan and outside linebacker Junior Gallete raised hell for quarterbacks racking up a combined 22.5 sacks while rookie John Jenkins looked pretty solid on the interior line opening up holes for linebackers Curtis Lofton and David Hawthorne to stop the run (their run defense was still below average but it was much improved from their bottom-ranked unit of 2012.) Ryan really worked his magic in the secondary taking the 2nd worst passing defense in the league from 2012 and making them the 2nd-best in the league in 2013. Keenan Lewis worked wonders at cornerback and I believe was snubbed as an All-Pro pick, Kenny Vaccarro was an excellent two-way safety well worth his 1st round draft pick and veteran holdovers like Malcolm Jenkins and Jabrari Greer were much more productive in Ryan's system. Ryan's work in New Orleans this year proved to his skeptics that he's a brilliant defensive mind and makes Jerry Jones look incredibly stupid for firing him. The Saints need to be more consistent at stopping the run and establish some semblance of a rushing attack, but with Drew Brees, Jimmy Graham and their suddenly stiff passing defense, the Saints certainly have enough talent to be a perennial playoff team and outside title contender.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: If you follow football closely at all, you're well-aware of all the bad press that came out of Tampa Bay this season thanks to quarterback Josh Freeman and head coach Greg Schiano. While Freeman was a headcase who really blew his last opportunity to succeed in the NFL in Tampa, he was cut from the team by Week 5 so he can't really be blamed for a majority of the Buccaneers struggles in 2013. The dubious honor of fallman for the Buccaneers goes to Schiano. Plan and simple, Schiano blew it. He lost the locker room with his hard-ass style and no one really wanted to play for them. There's a bevy of talent on both sides of the ball in Tampa, but that's useless if those guys don't play with any sort of fire under them.Not to mention, Schiano misused newly-acquired cornerback Darrelle Revis in zone coverage instead of playing to his strengths in man-to-to coverage. Schiano is fully responsible for the misdirection and lack of control over his team thanks to the toxic environment he established. With all the debacles caused by Freeman and Schiano stealing the limelight, there was a surprising amount of good things happening in Tampa. Outside linebacker Lavonte David and defensive tackle Gerald McCoy quietly posted All-Pro seasons and continue to be two of the most underrated players at their positions. Vincent Jackson also managed to prove his worth putting up over 1,200 yards with the league's worst passing offense (though rookie quarterback Mike Glennon did manage to show some promise for the future.) The ultimate silver lining for the Buccaneers this year is that they played most of the season without star running back Doug Martin. Not having Martin's speed, vision and big-play ability out there for the last 3 months of the year took away a lot of this offense's edge and ability to stretch the field. Without a franchise back like Martin in the lineup or much of a passing game to fill the void of his absence, victories are going to be hard to come by. The Buccaneers can only go up in 2014 with a healthy Martin, a full offseason for Glennon to develop and above all, a new defensive-minded coach in Lovie Smith, who also happens to have a reputation for being well-respected by his players (so basically the anti-Schiano.)