The Quarter Season NFC South Landscape

by Dave Choate on Oct 5, 2009 6:01 AM EDT in Editorial

Well, gang, most of the teams in the NFL now have four games under their belt, which means it's time to take a look at the landscape in the NFC South. Our beloved Falcons are holding their own and looking light years ahead of the hated Tampa Bay Bucs and the disliked Carolina Panthers, but unfortunately they're not quite in first place in the division.

And at this point, the 4-0 New Orleans Saints are....

*BLARRRGHHHH*

Wow, whew. Sorry. I don't know where that came from. I was just saying that the thus far undefeated Saints lead....

*VVVOOOORRSSSTTTT*

Goodness, there goes most of my internal organs! I was pretty attached to that spleen, too. Damn. Anyways, what I was trying to get out despite the waves of revulsion wracking my body is that the Saints are on top of the.....on top of....

*dies*

via www.how-to-draw-cartoons-online.com

Well, now that I'm a ghost, I guess I can continue what I was saying before. The New Orleans Saints are winning the division after spanking the heretofore undefeated New York Jets, which totally sucks. Let's take a quick look at every team in the division, shall we?

New Orleans Saints, 4-0: This is a very good football team. Now that head coach Sean Payton has come to his senses and given stud running back Pierre Thomas the run he deserves, the Saints have Drew Brees slinging the football, Reggie Bush and Thomas as weapons out of the backfield, a solid offensive line and a talented group of receivers and tight ends. Even when a team manages to successfully shut down Brees, the running game goes absolutely nuts. On offense, they just can't be stopped.

What really scares me about the Saints is that their defense is no longer the totally inept mess that it has been in years past. I'm not going to go so far as to say it's awesome—the Jets, despite their early success, are no offensive juggernaut—but it's solid enough to get them out of jams. They match up pretty well against the Falcons and are guaranteed to be a major thorn in our collective sides through the entire season. We're going to have to beat them both times out and hope the defense collapses (perhaps) or the offense suddenly shuts down (probably not). Week 8 should be some very compelling football. I still think we'll split the season series, with each team winning at home.

Predicted Record: 12-4

Atlanta Falcons, 2-1: We talk about these guys every day, so you probably have a pretty clear idea of how they're doing. The bye week should give us the momentum we need to come out swinging against the 49ers, who without Frank Gore apparently don't have a run game to speak of. I still think a winning season is within our grasp.

Predicted Record: 9-7

Carolina Panthers, 0-3: The folks over at Cat Scratch Reader are a nice bunch, but a recent post about what the team can learn from other playoff teams that started 0-3 probably isn't realistic. Age and sudden ineffectiveness has caught up with the Panthers, who were a very good team just a year ago, and while they aren't likely to look this shaky all season long, there's nothing about this roster that screams for a sudden turnaround. The Panthers will push ahead hard and will probably be another tough matchup for us when we meet again, but after this season you can bet they'll be looking hard at some of the top quarterbacks in the draft and maybe at the possibility of getting something....anything....for Julius Peppers. Could be a long one for the Teal Cats.

Predicted Record: 7-9

Tampa Bay Bucs, 0-4: Where to even start with this team. I actually thought the Bucs were going to be a very tough out in the NFC South this season, thanks to a healthy combination of peyote and drywall. What I've seen thus far is a team that needs an offensive and defensive identity, as well as a rookie coach in Raheem Morris who has some serious homework to do. I still see a bright future for rookie quarterback Josh Freeman and the Bucs in general, but it sure doesn't look like that future is coming on in 2009.

Predicted Record: 4-12

So those are the thoughts of Ghost Dave. What do you think?

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Comments

Man.

I did forsee prior to the season commencing a 9-7 record. And now it seems that could even be a reach. The Saints are rolling and we have a MONSTER schedule. ’9ers, Bears, Saints are all in the forseeable future. It could be a rough few weeks.

New Orleans Hornets: The most inconsistent team in the NBA.

by Grayson on Oct 5, 2009 7:15 AM EDT reply actions

RIP, Dave - you'll be missed

I agree that Tampa looks terrible offensively and defensively, and that Carolina just looks below average.

As for the Saints – while I do think that the defense is much improved, and they are doing a great job of forcing turnovers, I do not think they are a good/great defense yet. They played: 1) Detroit with Stafford starting his first professional game as a rookie; 2) Philly with Kolb getting his first professional start; 3) Buffalo who fired their offensive coordinator just before the season; and 4) the Jets, who had a rookie QB in just his 4th start (although he looked pretty darn good in the first 3 games). The defense is better, but they will come back to earth some…

My main hope is that the bye week cools off some of the momentum for them now – they’re riding so high, I’m sure they wish they could keep playing… If the Giants can’t beat them Week 6 (at the Superdome), they might not lose 2 games this year. Wow, that schedule looks easy (it even has most of their tough games at home).

by orang3b on Oct 5, 2009 8:34 AM EDT reply actions

after the pats loss I have lowered my expectations

but I refuse to believe that the Aints are better than we are. Put Brees on his butt a couple of times and he will choke as usual.

Life is a garden. Dig it!

by Hardcore Falcon on Oct 5, 2009 8:34 AM EDT reply actions

yea right

the jets tried that it didnt work so well we ran all over them and they have one of the best defenses in the league as far as these predictions go i agree with most of them except i think the falcons will probably be a wild card team at 10-6 or 11-5

geaux saints
see ya’ll soon

by simone219 on Oct 5, 2009 9:56 PM EDT up reply actions

BM my brother

Looking forward to it. come by and say hello, I sit in section 350. you cant miss me I will be the one laughin my arse off.

Life is a garden. Dig it!

by Hardcore Falcon on Oct 7, 2009 3:32 PM EDT up reply actions

defense

anybody been keeping up with Brooking. All he is doing is leading the Cowboys in tackles. he did again yesterday with 9.
letting him go was a huge mistake a knee jerk reaction to his last Falcon performance. really one play.
if TD/MS keep this up they’ll never get to the Big Game

by gbmahoney on Oct 5, 2009 8:56 AM EDT reply actions

Don't think tackles mean all that much.

It’s game changing plays such as Sacks, INT, FF where good players show themselves.

New Orleans Hornets: The most inconsistent team in the NBA.

by Grayson on Oct 5, 2009 9:20 AM EDT up reply actions

He also headbutted one of his coaches...

in the stomach after making a good play. It was pretty awesome.

by TomQ on Oct 5, 2009 10:35 AM EDT up reply actions

Brooking's overrated

says this Ga. Tech fan. IMO he’s slow, not a great tackler and gets caught out of position a lot. The money he was (over)paid can be put to better use elsewhere. Plus, he’s getting older; better to let him go before he becomes a very expensive liability. I wish him well though, as long as he’s not playing the Falcons!

by tom slick on Oct 5, 2009 11:46 AM EDT up reply actions

Didn't he usually lead us in tackles too?

Whether you’re making them near the line of scrimmage or cleaning up after a big run or short pass play makes a big difference.

That said, could be that the change of scenery is helping Brooking. He was fired up in that game yesterday.

by NeedATicketToTheGame on Oct 5, 2009 4:01 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions

If I recall correctly...

Brooking bit on a play action fake on 3rd and 16. His responsibility on that play was the TE who made a 18-19 yard catch.

At that point in the game, our offense had caught fire. If he doesn’t make a boneheaded move there, we probably stop the play and I firmly believe Matt Ryan would’ve lead us to victory.

But we’ll never know. Such is the painful reality of life.

by Zippo729 on Oct 5, 2009 10:23 PM EDT up reply actions

In the ARI-ATL playoff game.

by Zippo729 on Oct 5, 2009 10:23 PM EDT up reply actions

Line backs are a big part of 3-4 systems

Its not surprising that he is doing well in Dallas.
But lets be honest, Peterson is outplaying Brooking right now by a long shot.

Its true. I'm a Falcoholic! I just can't live without Falcohol!

by phoenix falcoholic on Oct 5, 2009 9:59 AM EDT reply actions

*Linebackers

Its true. I'm a Falcoholic! I just can't live without Falcohol!

by phoenix falcoholic on Oct 5, 2009 9:59 AM EDT up reply actions

Agreed - love Brooking, but Peterson was an upgrade

by TomQ on Oct 5, 2009 10:36 AM EDT up reply actions

our scedule is tough the 1st half

of the season, but much easier the second half. If we can get thru the 1st 8 games at 5-3 we will be set up for a good run at the divisional title. The second half of the season does include trips to play at both NY teams but it also has buffalo, tampa TWICE, and home games against philly and the saints which could be enough to help us win those 2 games against tough NFC opponents. so we could actually have a 5-3 or maybe even 6-2 record for the second half, therefore giving us an overall record of 10-6 or 11-5. Yes this is a true homers predictions but barring any major injuries(knock on wood) I think we can definitely have a good record and get into the playoffs as a wildcard team probably, with the way the saints are playing I see 12-4 minimum for them this year. But I have seen teams just lose it and forget how to play football for 5-6 weeks at a time, so maybe that could happen to the saints, say weeks 8-14. So we can beat them twice and get the tiebreakers over them.
Anyways we’ll see how it turns out, I’m glad SF pasted the rams yesterday, then mauybe they’ll be bigheaded this week against us and we can go into frisco and steal a win- say 16-13 atlanta wins.
LETS GO FALCONS
L-DAWG

by ATLsince1972 on Oct 5, 2009 12:47 PM EDT reply actions

I think everyone's expectations are a little tempered now

It seems inconceivable that we could be talking about stealing a win from the 49ers after the way we started the season, but that’s what their emergence and a bad game against the Patriots have done for us. I still see us as a team with a winning record and an outside shot at a playoff spot, which wouldn’t really be a significant step backward considering we’re still technically re-tooling.

Let’s see what next weekend brings.

by Dave Choate on Oct 5, 2009 1:55 PM EDT reply actions

The good news Dave is I hear you can live a relatively full life without that spleen

The bad news is the Saints look like a SB contender. Me, I’ll worry about SF first and leave the Saints until Nov. 2nd when we can actually try and do something about them. The Niners demolished the Rams yesterday who are still an NFL team last time I checked.

Speaking of the Saints, why on earth did Fox and CBS show the Ravens – NE game and Cowboys – Denver yesterday? saints – Jets had to be the game with the most local interest.

The only thing I got out of the Ravens – NE game is the ridiculous lengths refs will go to protect Brady. Every time the Ravens breathed on the guy its a personal foul. On the other hand, I really don’t understand how a stiff arm by a running back to the face is ok but you graze a QB’s facemask with your pinky and its 15 yards. I could ramble on about this but I’ll let it go. Its not fair though. You can probably tell I was a defensive player back inthe day.

by zooker on Oct 5, 2009 2:32 PM EDT reply actions

We are still a contender!

We have one loss,yet the vibe is starting to get so negative around here. Maybe I am unrealistic but we lost one game, I still believe in the Comrade and the Smitterator. Turner will get it going, At some point White will get some deep balls. Our D has held up better then we would have thought before the season. The bye will give us some time to remember who we are, a balanced offensive juggernaut. And our D is coming along… They tried to shut down Brady (success in my mind) and got slashed in the running game. So don’t lose hope yet fellow falchoholics we can still be 15-1… And that aint bad! Or we can at least still have a really good rebuilding year!

by Trainhopper on Oct 5, 2009 5:00 PM EDT via mobile reply actions

I think the concerns are directed more at some personnel. The big play guys like White and Turner are not coming through like last year. Tony Gonzales was brought in for run blocking, short to mid range passing, and red zone. However he is leading the team in receiving, and the running game has been well below last year’s average.

I realize that the falcons won’t be taking anyone by surprise this year, but that running game needs to get going. I think in order to do that, we will need some big plays from White (and even Jenkins). If they stack 8 men in the box, and we aren’t hitting passes for 15+ yards on a consistent basis, then those 8 men will stay there. And Turner will still be at a 3.5 ypc avg.

Matt Ryan is good enough to hit those bigger plays. Add on that he is has only been sacked twice this year, and we should be able to hit those big passes. He clearly has enough time to throw. I think with Norwood back, the bye, and SF this week, it is necessary to make some big plays this week.

by Whyte Bler 000 on Oct 5, 2009 5:09 PM EDT up reply actions

High expectations, eh?

I’m not sure if the vibe is negative here, more like a jolt of realism IMO. When you play a (more or less) elite team and get thumped, dismissing that experience may not be the best thing to do. I think most people around here rightly think we have a pretty good (but not great) team. It’s largely a matter of aggregate talent, and we don’t have the necessary personnel this year.

Agree with you that Comrade & Smitty are capable leaders to take the Falcons on their journey to the Upper Tier of the NFL. They haven’t quite accumulated the horses to take them there yet, but everyone’s pulling in the right direction. Let’s all enjoy the ride!

by tom slick on Oct 5, 2009 5:41 PM EDT up reply actions

Wha????

What Saints schedule are you looking at that would make you believe that this team will lose more than 3 regular season games barring a serious string of inuries? Stop the run and they pass, stop the pass, and they run, blitz and they hit their hot routes, try to get into a track meet with them and Greg Williams shows you what a defenisve genious he is. Shall I go on?

What Panthers team have you watched that leads you to believe that they can win 7 games this season? I thought they were serious overachievers last season. This year, they look right on course. Remember, they played what turned out to be the second easiest defensive fantasy schedule last season behind your beloved Falcons. Now that both teams are actually playing mid to upper level NFL talent, things don’t look quite as rosey, do they?

I have no idea how you couldn’t see the Buccanners going back to their Retro-circa 1976-77 level of football. The only thing that gives me some hope that they might win three games is Josh Johnson’s speed wreaking havoc on a couple of opposing teams as he wins a couple of games Michael Vick style – with his legs.

by vaiano7 on Oct 6, 2009 4:24 PM EDT reply actions

Bottom line

Until we see those two teams play, it’s all just talk. It’s four games into the season and you guys look incredible, but I thought 12-4 was a very reasonable assumption. Sometimes very good teams lose surprising games. I think the Panthers can reasonably be expected to not go 0-16.

And buddy, we’re still 2-1. Give it time and the Falcons might surprise you (and us!)…either for good or ill.

by Dave Choate on Oct 6, 2009 6:25 PM EDT up reply actions