2013 NFC South Division Preview

2013 N F C South Preview

The South Division of the NFC was a one-team race last year with the Atlanta Falcons quickly separating from the pack and cruising to a six-game defeat of the other three teams.  It was expected after the New Orleans Saints entered the season with coaching suspensions.  By the time the Saints started to turn things around, it was too late.

 

2013 should be an interesting season.  The Falcons once again look like the class of the division, but of course with scheduling, they will play two other first place teams from last year, while New Orleans and Carolina face easier competition in those two games.  Tampa Bay also faces an easier schedule, but we do not believe the Buccaneers can rock the boat in the South this year.

 

Next to Green Bay, Atlanta has the best passing attack in the NFC.  Matt Ryan is quickly becoming one of the elite passers in the league, while Julio Jones, Roddy White, and the ageless wonder, tight end Tony Gonzalez, form a top-notch receiving corps.  If Steven Jackson has one more good year in his legs, the Falcons just may be ready to advance that final step to the Super Bowl.

 

New Orleans had the best offense in the NFC last year, by 25 points over the second best team.  On the other hand, the Saints gave up the most points in the NFC by 10 points.  Thus, the Saints finished 7-9.  Can new defensive coordinator Rob Ryan work magic on a defense that played like 11 matadors last year?  On top of the improvement needed, the Saints will switch from a 4-3 to a 3-4 alignment.  And, they will not get much immediate help from their draft class.

 

Carolina has enough talent now to contend for a playoff berth.  Cam Newton may not complete 60% of his passes, but he will average more per completion than average.  He will also be hard on enemy pass rushers with his ability to make them miss.  A nice defensive rush that might result in a sack on most QBs, could very well result in a 10 to 20 yard gain on a scramble.

 

The Panthers will have to get by without Jonathan Stewart for six games after he was placed on the PUP list.  DeAngelo Williams is starting to show his age, so the Panthers may struggle unless rookie Kenjon Barner can take up the slack.  The receiving corps is average at best, and the offensive line is better blocking for the run than the pass.

 

The Panthers should be improved this year because their defense looks much better, especially in the line and at linebacker.  Look for rookie tackle Star Lotulelei to be a key right away.  He won’t make 10 tackles a game, but he will command double blocks on several plays, and that will allow the linebackers to look much better.

 

Tampa Bay overachieved last year, and they still finished below .500.  The Buccaneers are average or below average at every unit on offense and defense.  Quarterback Josh Freeman won’t appear on the all-pro list, and he won’t get a lot of hype, but he can pass for 300 yards on many Sundays.  However, he tends to force passes and threw too many interceptions last year.  He will continue to stretch defenses with longer passes, because that will open up running lanes for second year star back Doug Martin, one of the biggest surprises in the league last year.  Vincent Jackson and Mike Williams make up a talented one-two punch at wideout, but the Bucs need more skill players to emerge.  The defense does not have enough talent to compete for a playoff spot this year.

 

We have added a new wrinkle to our coverage this year.  In the past, friends of ours have asked us if we knew how to recreate the exact colors of their favorite team so that they could print those colors on their computer.  We have found this information from multiple sites in the last couple of months, and we are going to show you the RGB numbers so you can replicate those colors.  These can be used in graphics programs, but it can easily be used in MS-Word and MS-Excel.

 

Here are the official colors for the NFC South.

West	Color	Red	Green	Blue
Atlanta Falcons	Black	17	28	36
	Red	198	12	48
	White	255	255	255
Carolina Panthers	Panther Blue	0	136	206
	Black	17	28	36
	Metallic Silver	133	136	139
New Orleans Saints	Old Gold	150	130	82
	Black	17	28	36
	White	255	255	255
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Red	167	25	48
	Pewter	102	92	79
	Black	17	28	36

 

 

2012 Final Standings & PiRate Ratings

NFC South PiRate Mean Biased W-L-T Pts Opp Atlanta Falcons 104.7 105.6 106.3 13-3-0 419 299 New Orleans Saints 100.7 100.2 99.9 7-9-0 461 454 Carolina Panthers 99.7 100.0 101.4 7-9-0 357 363 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 98.6 97.6 96.8 7-9-0 389 394

 

2013 Preseason PiRate Ratings

South	PiRate	Mean	Biased
Atlanta Falcons	103.6	106.6	103.1
New Orleans Saints	101.7	102.0	101.6
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	98.5	98.1	98.7
Carolina Panthers	98.4	97.7	98.1

 

PiRate Previews

Team	Atlanta Falcons
Head Coach	Mike Smith
O-Coord.	Dirk Koetter
D-Coord.	Mike Nolan
Projected Starting Lineup
Position	Player
	Offense
Quarterback	Matt Ryan
Running Back	Steven Jackson
Fullback	Bradie Ewing
Wide Receiver	Julio Jones
Wide Receiver	Roddy White
Tight End	Tony Gonzalez
Left Tackle	Sam Baker
Left Guard	Justin Blalock
Center	Peter Konz
Right Guard	Garrett Reynolds
Right Tackle	Lamar Holmes
	Defense
Left End	Kroy Biermann
Left Tackle	Jonathan Babineaux
Right Tackle	Corey Peters
Right End	Osi Umenyiora
Sam LB	Stephen Nicholas
Mike LB	Akeem Dent
Will LB	Sean Weatherspoon
Left CB	Asante Samuel
Right CB	Desmond Trufant
Strong Safety	William Moore
Free Safety	Thomas Decoud
	Special Teams
Kicker	Matt Bryant
Punter	Matt Bosher
K-Return	Jacquizz Rodgers
P-Return	Dominique Franks
Predictions
Record	12-4
Division	1st

 

Team	Carolina Panthers
Head Coach	Ron Rivera
O-Coord.	Mike Shula
D-Coord.	Sean McDermott
Projected Starting Lineup
Position	Player
	Offense
Quarterback	Cam Newton
Running Back	DeAngelo Williams
Fullback	Mike Tolbert
Wide Receiver	Steve Smith
Wide Receiver	Brandon LaFell
Tight End	Greg Olsen
Left Tackle	Jordan Gross
Left Guard	Amini Silatolu
Center	Ryan Kalil
Right Guard	Garry Williams
Right Tackle	Byron Bell
	Defense
Left End	Charles Johnson
Left Tackle	Dwan Edwards
Nose Tackle	Star Lotulelei
Right End	Greg Hardy
Sam LB	Thomas Davis
Mike LB	Luke Kuechly
Will LB	Jon Beason
Left CB	Drayton Florence
Right CB	Captain Munnerlyn
Strong Safety	Mike Mitchell
Free Safety	Charles Godfrey
	Special Teams
Kicker	Graham Gano
Punter	Brad Nortman
K-Return	Ted Ginn
P-Return	Ted Ginn
Predictions
Record	8-8
Division	3rd

Team	New Orleans Saints
Head Coach	Sean Payton
O-Coord.	Pete Carmichael
D-Coord.	Rob Ryan
Projected Starting Lineup
Position	Player
	Offense
Quarterback	Drew Brees
Running Back	Pierre Thomas
Fullback	Jed Collins
Wide Receiver	Lance Moore
Wide Receiver	Marques Colston
Tight End	Jimmy Graham
Left Tackle	Charles Brown
Left Guard	Ben Grubbs
Center	Brian De La Puente
Right Guard	Jahri Evans
Right Tackle	Zach Strief
	Defense
Left End	Akiem Hicks
Nose Tackle	Brodrick Bunkley
Right End	Cameron Jordan
Left OLB	Junior Galette
Left ILB	Jonathan Vilma
Right ILB	Curtis Lofton
Right OLB	Martez Wilson
Left CB	Jabari Greer
Right CB	Keenan Lewis
Strong Safety	Roman Harper
Free Safety	Malcolm Jenkins
	Special Teams
Kicker	Garrett Hartley
Punter	Thomas Morstead
K-Return	Darren Sproles
P-Return	Darren Sproles
Predictions
Record	9-7
Division	2nd

Team	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Head Coach	Greg Schiano
O-Coord.	Mike Sullivan
D-Coord.	Bill Sheridan
Projected Starting Lineup
Position	Player
	Offense
Quarterback	Josh Freeman
Running Back	Doug Martin
Fullback	Erik Lorig
Wide Receiver	Vincent Jackson
Wide Receiver	Mike Williams
Tight End	Luke Stocker
Left Tackle	Donald Penn
Left Guard	Carl Nicks
Center	Jeremy Zuttah
Right Guard	Davin Joseph
Right Tackle	Dernar Dotson
	Defense
Left End	Da’Quan Bowers
Left Tackle	Gerald McCoy
Right Tackle	Gary Gibson
Right End	Adrian Clayborn
Sam LB	Dekoda Watson
Mike LB	Mason Foster
Will LB	Lavonte David
Left CB	Darrelle Revis
Right CB	Leonard Johnson
Strong Safety	Mark Barron
Free Safety	Dashon Goldson
	Special Teams
Kicker	Lawrence Tynes
Punter	Michael Koenen
K-Return	Mike James
P-Return	Eric Page
Predictions
Record	6-10
Division	4th