How will the Bucs look without Tom Brady? Can Derek Carr lead the Saints to the playoffs? We look at that and more in this NFC South preview.
Falcons head coach Arthur Smith has gone 7-10 in both of his first two seasons in Atlanta. Whether 2023 is Smith's last leading the Falcons could come down to how Desmond Ridder performs as the team's new starting quarterback.
Smith benched 2022 starter Marcus Mariota during the bye week last season. The Falcons turned to their rookie third-round draft pick to lead the offense in their final four games. Ridder went 2-2 in his four starts. The Cincinnati product completed 63.5 percent of his passes in that span and threw two touchdowns and no interceptions. Atlanta's offense is full of weapons around Ridder. The Falcons drafted All-American running back Bijan Robinson eighth-overall in April's draft, adding him to a backfield that already contains Cordarrelle Patterson and Tyler Allgeier. And on the outside, wide receiver Drake London and tight end Kyle Pitts should be Ridder's favorite targets. The Falcons ranked 15th in the NFL in scoring last season and were near the bottom of the league in several passing categories. How successfully will Ridder lead the Falcons offense in 2022? That's what Atlanta is waiting to find out. "We all have something to prove, and that includes Desmond," Smith said this summer, via the team website."He has four starts under his belt. It'll be a different team that we line up with this year. Fundamentally, there are things we've asked him to do. [Offensive coordinator] Dave Ragone has challenged him. He's very confident but he has to go out there and prove it."The Panthers have had enough of bouncing from QB to QB. After turning to Teddy Bridgewater, Sam Darnold, Mayfield, and even Newton in recent years—with mixed results in every case—Carolina got the QB it wanted this offseason. Carolina traded four draft picks and its top wide receiver, D.J. Moore, to the Chicago Bears to acquire the No. 1 overall pick in April's draft. What was Carolina's prize? Former Alabama quarterback Bryce Young. First-year Panthers head coach Frank Reich wasn't bothered by the former Heisman Trophy winner's small frame. Carolina took the 5-foot-10, 204-pound signal caller at No. 1 and named him their 2023 starter pretty early on in the summer. "Yes, he's QB1," Reich said of Young this summer."I think Bryce has made good progress. You can just tell, he and the whole group on offense...you can just tell everybody is feeling more comfortable with it. Certainly, Bryce is as well. So we feel good about where he's at." The Panthers started rebuilding its roster last season. Carolina parted with several starters, including Pro Bowl running back Christian McCaffrey. This offseason, the team brought in veterans Miles Sanders, Adam Thielen, and Hayden Hurst to plug some holes on offense and give Young a few experienced players to throw to. The Panthers also have a solid, experienced offensive line. And their defense has a distinguished corps led by edge rusher Brian Burns, cornerback Jaycee Horn, and defensive tackle Derrick Brown. Is that enough to contend for the division with a rookie QB? And will Young's frame hold up over the course of a 17-game season? That's what the Panthers are about to find out.Derek Carr's nine-year tenure as the Raiders' starting quarterback came to an abrupt end last season. Carr was suddenly benched and inactive for the final two games of the season, and the Raiders later released the four-time Pro Bowler in February. The Saints saw mixed results from Jameis Winston and Andy Dalton at quarterback in 2022 and were eager to sign Carr to a four-year, $150 million deal when he became a free agent. Carr reunited with his former Raiders coach, Dennis Allen, when he chose to sign in New Orleans."Derek was a guy that obviously I knew, but when our personnel people watched the tape and then our coaches watched the tape, he was clearly our No. 1 target in terms of what we wanted to do at the quarterback position," Allen said, via the team's website."We wanted to be first out there and make sure that he knew he was the No. 1 option." With the addition of Carr, the Saints are back as the favorites in the NFC South. At least that's what Vegas thinks. DraftKings Sportsbook gives the Saints the best odds of any team to win the NFC South as of Thursday evening. The Falcons have the second-best odds, followed by the Panthers , and Buccaneers . Carr's 2022 season was far from his best. The Fresno State product had his lowest completion percentage since he was a rookie and tied a career-high with 14 interceptions. But the Saints still believe in Carr. The question still remains, though, whether that belief will turn into wins for the Saints.Robert Read is a Newsweek writer and reporter based in Florida. His focus is reporting on trending sports stories. Robert joined Newsweek in 2023. He is a graduate of the University of Iowa. You can get in touch with Robert by emailing
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