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AFC South: Surprise team aces the offseason| Conor Orr’s post-draft power rankings
The NFC South hasn’t been a strong division for quite some time, but the mediocrity among the four teams could lead to another compelling race down the stretch.
Last year, the Panthers surprised the football public by winning the division, but they did it with an 8–9 record and were on the right side of a three-way tiebreaker with the Falcons and Buccaneers after going 3–1 in the division. Now, there’s a case to be made that the team that wasn’t involved in the tiebreaker could win the division in 2026.
The Saints may be the team that goes from last to first with the moves they made this offseason, including the first-round selection of dynamic wide receiver Jordyn Tyson. But the Buccaneers also got stronger and benefited from the draft after edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. fell to them in the middle of the first round.
As for the Panthers, they made their mark in free agency, signing edge rusher Jaelan Phillips and linebacker Devin Lloyd. And the Falcons are hoping the addition of Tua Tagovailoa will either push Michael Penix Jr. to improve or force them to turn the page on Penix after making him the No. 8 pick in the 2024 draft.
There are plenty of storylines in this wide-open race in the NFC South.
New Orleans Saints
Offseason grade: B+
Key additions: G David Edwards, LB Kaden Elliss, CB Martin Emerson Jr., RB Travis Etienne Jr., DT Christen Miller, WR Jordyn Tyson, DT Tyree Wilson
Key subtractions: LB Demario Davis, C Luke Fortner, TE/QB Taysom Hill, edge Cameron Jordan, CB Alontae Taylor
Finally, the Saints can say they have moved on from the Drew Brees–Sean Payton era after years of putting off the rebuild and prioritizing older players. Out went Jordan, Davis and Hill as the team shifted to building a new core around second-year quarterback Tyler Shough.
GM Mickey Loomis likely had no choice but to go all in on this youth movement after seeing Shough’s impressive rookie performances and the dynamic connection he had with star receiver Chris Olave. Now, this intriguing offense under the guidance of coach Kellen Moore is positioned to hit the next level, thanks to the arrival of Tyson, this year’s first-round pick. Tyson’s ability to get open in a hurry should help Olave get more opportunities downfield.
Also, Moore’s playbook will expand with the notable signing of Etienne, but that addition created controversy because it likely means Alvin Kamara will see a decline in snaps this season—that’s if the team wants to keep the last core player from the glory days with Brees and Payton.
The offense should be better this season, perhaps enough to make them contenders in the subpar NFC South. But holes remain on the defensive side, especially on the interior of the front. Perhaps defensive coordinator Brandon Staley can get the most out of Miller, the second-round rookie, and Wilson, the 2023 first-round pick who was recently traded by the Raiders. One negative from this offseason was the failure to add another reliable edge rusher to join Chase Young and Carl Granderson.
Carolina Panthers
Offseason grade: B
Key additions: OT Stone Forsythe, C Luke Fortner, OT Monroe Freeling, LB Devin Lloyd, edge Jaelan Phillips, QB Kenny Pickett, OT Rasheed Walker
Key subtractions: QB Andy Dalton, RB Rico Dowdle, C Cade Mays, DT A’Shawn Robinson
The Panthers’ roster has come a long way in the two years since Dave Canales was hired as coach. There’s depth at various positions, fewer holes in all three phases of the team, and the defense could be on the rise with the splash signings of Phillips and Lloyd.
But even with those moves, it’s still difficult to gauge how far this team can go due to the uneven performances of Bryce Young, the 2023 No. 1 pick who heads into a make-or-break fourth season. This franchise deserves credit, though, for ensuring Young has a stout offensive line, giving him the best odds of finding his stride in 2026.
On the downside, the team may have overinvested in the offensive line, using the No. 19 pick in the draft on Freeling, despite signing Walker as an insurance player in case Ikem Ekwonu is forced to miss time due to his significant knee injury. There’s also veteran Taylor Moton, giving the Panthers four starting-caliber tackles.
Carolina probably would have been better off using its first-round pick on a defender to complete the makeover along the front. Defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero will need to deliver a productive unit to account for the possibility of Young struggling again. But if Young makes the most of his offensive line depth, this could be the year Carolina goes from surprise division champion to the most dominant team in the NFC South. This team has depth, talent and stellar coaching. It’s all on Young now to guide the Panthers in the right direction.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Offseason grade: B-
Key additions: Edge Rueben Bain Jr., LB Alex Anzalone, QB Jake Browning, RB Kenneth Gainwell, edge Al-Quadin Muhammad, DT A’Shawn Robinson, LB Josiah Trotter
Key subtractions: LB Lavonte David, CB Jamel Dean, WR Mike Evans, edge Haason Reddick, RB Rachaad White
The Buccaneers were forced to retool their roster after finishing among the most disappointing teams in the league last year, falling to 8–9 after a 5–1 start. They were loaded at various positions, but their inability to rush the passer, perhaps this roster’s lone weakness, ended up being their downfall.
With what transpired in 2025, the pressure is on Bain to give this defensive front a jolt, allowing coach Todd Bowles the freedom to call more aggressive plays. (Bowles might be on the hot seat as he heads into his fifth season as the head coach in Tampa Bay.) Bain will have plenty of motivation to make an immediate impact after months of hearing about his lack of arm length (30⅞-inch arms), which played a role in why he was available for Tampa Bay in the draft at pick No. 15.
The Buccaneers got younger this offseason, but now they’re banking on inexperienced players to fill the voids left by Evans, David and Dean. But GM Jason Licht has invested heavily at wide receiver and cornerback in recent drafts, and will be looking at players such as Emeka Egbuka, Jalen McMillan, Benjamin Morrison and to step up. At linebacker, veteran newcomer Anzalone and second-round rookie Trotter could form a productive duo.
If the younger players can make the most of their opportunities, the Buccaneers could quickly rebound to become a viable threat in the division and the conference.
Atlanta Falcons
Offseason grade: C
Key additions: WR Zachariah Branch, WR Jahan Dotson, edge Samson Ebukam, K Nick Folk, LB Christian Harris, edge Azeez Ojulari, RB Brian Robinson Jr., OT Jawaan Taylor, QB Tua Tagovailoa, CB Avieon Terrell
Key subtractions: RB Tyler Allgeier, QB Kirk Cousins, LB Kaden Elliss, OT Kaleb McGary, WR Darnell Mooney, DT David Onyemata
The Falcons haven’t publicly said they’re having a quarterback competition this summer, but it appears they’re headed that way with the signing of Tagovailoa, the former Dolphins standout.
Outside of the Tagovailoa signing, Atlanta didn’t make much of a splash this offseason, in large part because this roster already had talent and youth—and didn’t have a first-round draft pick. However, this team has been stagnant for years, and time is running out to do something with the core group of Bijan Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts. That’s where Tagovailoa comes in. He has his flaws, but he did get impressive results from guiding the Dolphins’ speedy offense and took them to the postseason twice. The Falcons haven’t reached the playoffs since 2017.
If Penix can’t make a speedy recovery from his torn ACL, or he continues to struggle on the field, the Falcons likely won’t hesitate to turn to Tagovailoa, especially because this new coaching regime didn’t draft Penix. But maybe the hiring of coach Kevin Stefanski is enough to maximize all the potential on this roster, including edge rushers Jalon Walker and James Pearce Jr., the 2025 first-round picks. It’s not a given that Pearce will be available for the season opener due to his legal matters, but the charges against him will be dismissed if he completes a pretrial intervention program offered to him by the state of Florida. Also, the NFL is reviewing the incident under the personal conduct policy.
Stefanski led the Browns to the postseason multiple times, but there was plenty of bad during his six seasons there, too. There’s so much unknown heading into this new era in Atlanta.
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GILBERTO MANZANO
Gilberto Manzano is a staff writer covering the NFL for Sports Illustrated. After starting off as a breaking news writer at NFL.com in 2014, he worked as the Raiders beat reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal and covered the Chargers and Rams for the Orange County Register and Los Angeles Daily News. During his time as a combat sports reporter, he was awarded best sports spot story of 2018 by the Nevada Press Association for his coverage of the Conor McGregor-Khabib Nurmagomedov post-fight brawl. Manzano, a first-generation Mexican-American with parents from Nayarit, Mexico, is the cohost of Compas on the Beat, a sports and culture show featuring Mexican-American journalists. He has been a member of the Pro Football Writers of America since 2017.
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