The Atlanta Falcons and the Carolina Panthers squared off with first place in the NFC South on the line. Both teams entered the game below .500, but both were hoping to capitalize on the sudden collapse of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In the end, the game went to overtime and nearly ended in a tie, perfectly encapsulating just how messed up the NFC South currently is.

ATLANTA FALCONS: THE MASTERS OF THE CHOKE

The Falcons won the game and are currently the only team in the division not below .500 as the win moved them to 4-4. This team has been the butt of jokes since their 28-3 collapse back in Super Bowl 51, but this franchise has been the masters of the choke well before that game. The Falcons spent years looking for back-to-back winning seasons finally accomplishing that in 2008 and 2009, the first two years under Mike Smith and Matt Ryan. In that time, I’ve watched them blow three score leads against the Lions, Saints, Cowboys, Bears and so many others I’ve lost count, and those are just in the regular season. They’ve also nearly blown a three-score lead to Seattle and did blow a three-score lead to San Francisco in the 2011 postseason. Earlier this year, they blew a multi-score late lead to the Saints. They are impossible to trust with a lead. Sunday’s game with Carolina proved that as they gave up a 60-plus yard touchdown in the final seconds that sent the game to overtime.

That being said, Atlanta has some semblance of hope. They are 4-4 but could easily be 7-1. They collapsed against New Orleans, but almost completed a 28-3 comeback of their own against the Rams in week two. A very bad roughing the passer penalty quashed any hope of a comeback against Tampa. The only loss they weren’t really competitive in was against Cincinnati. If they can limit the mistakes going forward, they’ve got a shot.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: NOT WHAT THEY USED TO BE

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have experienced a franchise resurgence since Tom Brady signed with them in the 2020 offseason. Free agents have made Tampa a career destination. The Buccaneers made the playoffs in both previous seasons Brady was under center. They cashed in that first season becoming the first team ever to win the Super Bowl in their home stadium. Tampa responded in year two with a division title and what looked like an amazing comeback against the Rams in the playoffs. Unfortunately for Tampa, Los Angeles had enough time to get into field goal range and win the game. Then, the offseason from hell hit the Bucs.

Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington broke news of Brady’s impending retirement. Brady announced his retirement and then changed his mind. That led to drama at every turn. Brady had to take a leave of absence to handle family business. He needed every Wednesday off, and finally Giselle Bundchen filed for divorce. It’s been somewhat noticeable in Brady’s play. His stats are decent, but he seems to be struggling in key moments. Tampa is currently riding a three-game losing streak, only the second such streak in Brady’s career. Never count Brady or the Bucs out, but this doesn’t look like their year right now.

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS: THE SLEEPER

Is there a more frustrating team than the New Orleans Saints? They made that big comeback against Atlanta, then dropped three in a row to Tampa, Carolina and Minnesota. They come up with a huge win against Seattle, before dropping two straight to Cincinnati and Arizona. On Sunday, Alvin Kamara returned to their lineup and they immediately shutout Las Vegas. Are they good or are they bad?

The answer is somewhere in between. New Orleans has, arguably, the most talented receiving corps in the entire NFL. When Kamara is healthy, the Saints running backs are a force to be reckoned with. But their defense struggles a lot. In two of their three wins, they still gave up 26 and 32 points. And their quarterback conundrum rivals that of the New England Patriots right now. Jameis Winston can throw the ball all over the field, but he is prone to a lot of interceptions. Andy Dalton is serviceable, but not great. And Taysom Hill is great on trick plays, but there’s got to be a reason that two different coaches haven’t trusted him to be the full-time starter. If Drew Brees, or someone better than these three, were walking through that door, New Orleans would be the easy favorite. Right now, they are the most bipolar team in the division.

CAROLINA PANTHERS

At 2-6, it’s easy to think the Panthers are the weakest team in the division, but one made field goal or extra point on Sunday and there would be a four-way tie at 3-5 and the Panthers would be in first place with the current first place Falcons in last place. This is all happening with an amazing turnover in personnel there in Charlotte.

The team entered training camp with four quarterbacks: Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Matt Corral and P. J. Walker. Corral and Darnold were both injured in the preseason, and Mayfield won the starting job. But Mayfield got hurt during the season and the team’s fate rests on the shoulders of P. J. Walker. Following a very bad performance against the Rams, the Panthers traded wide receiver Robbie Anderson and star running back Christian McCaffrey. For all intents and purposes, it looked like Carolina was packing it in. They responded by beating the defending division champion Buccaneers and nearly knocking off the Falcons for the division lead. Carolina should be the worst team in the NFL, but they really don’t look like it. They just look mediocre.

PREDICTION

Who is going to win the NFC South? I don’t know. None of them look good. New Orleans looks like they should be the favorite, but I don’t trust any of their quarterbacks long-term. Atlanta leads the division and has a favorable schedule going forward, but I’ve seen this franchise collapse too many times to say they will definitely do anything. Tampa looks to be on the verge of collapse, but I will never doubt a Tom Brady led team can overcome any adversity. And Carolina has had everything thrown at them and they haven’t gone away, although that may be because of the weaknesses of the rest of the division more than anything the Panthers have done. If you pressed me to pick right now, through 8 weeks? I’m picking the Falcons. But I really don’t know if any of them deserve to be picked.

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