NFC South review: Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tuesday 23 February 2016 08:57, UK
The Carolina Panthers dominated the NFC South, and much of the NFL season until their eventual undoing in Super Bowl 50, but what about the other three teams.
Carolina Panthers, 15-1
The Panthers fell at the final hurdle, losing Super Bowl 50 to the Denver Broncos amid a torrent of criticism aimed at their quarterback Cam Newton for his below-par performance and post-game attitude. That defeat must define their 2015 season but should not overshadow a magnificent body of work created by some of the NFL's most exciting players.
A 14-0 run set franchise records for their best-ever start and longest winning streak. Carolina developed some of the NFL's most threatening offence with Newton at the helm - the 26-year-old was setting a new bar for the athleticism required to be a modern-day quarterback adding a new level of dynamism to his team's plays. Meanwhile head coach Ron Rivera, a veteran of the 1985 Super Bowl-winning Chicago Bears, had his defence set up in typically miserly fashion.
Defeat to Atlanta in the penultimate game of the regular season prevented a clean 16-0 sweep but did nothing to halt the runaway train that powered past Seattle and Arizona in the play-offs. In the end, lifting the ultimate prize was just one step too far.
Star player: The Panthers can justifiably boast the season MVP in Newton despite his failings at the Super Bowl. He scored 45 touchdowns (35 passing, 10 rushing) while the strength of his running ability evolved the requirements of the quarterback position.
Grade: Losing the Super Bowl to the league's best defence in the Denver Broncos should not detract from a magnificent campaign, highlighted by the NFL's best player in Newton, that deserves an A+.
Atlanta Falcons, 8-8
Five games into the season, Atlanta had their fair share of people backing them to challenge for play-off progression. They ended their campaign second in the division behind Carolina, a respectable result on paper, but it wasn't enough to extend themselves into the postseason.
Their first defeat of the season to New Orleans was quickly forgotten after they bounced back to go 5-1 but an overtime loss to Tampa Bay caused their freefall. The Falcons had rescued a 17-point deficit in the game as Matt Ryan threw to Julio Jones with 17 seconds left, but they fell in overtime and wouldn't taste victory for another six games.
A particularly disheartening 38-0 loss to Carolina was thankfully followed by a win against Jacksonville, where wide receiver Jones scored a touchdown for the first time in seven weeks. Remarkably, they then handed Carolina their first defeat of the season after Jones' 70-yard touchdown. It was the type of performance that the Falcons just weren't able to replicate often enough.
Star player: Jones set a franchise record with his 116th reception of the season but, after a significant seven-week absence from the score-sheet, we're going with Devonta Freeman. The running back rushed for 11 touchdowns for 1,056 rushing yards.
Grade: The Falcons' 8-8 record was a marginal improvement on last year, and finishing behind only Carolina is a decent finish. We'll hand them a generous B-.
New Orleans Saints, 7-9
It's difficult to defend the Saints' record, since they defended it so poorly themselves. They suffered the ignominy of setting an NFL record for the most passing touchdowns allowed as a 45th concession sailed past them, a fact that sums up their 2015.
Their defence has been compared to the very worst that the NFL has ever offered, which actually makes their losing 7-9 record somewhat palatable. Rob Ryan, their defensive co-ordinator, was sent packing in November but Dennis Allen wasn't able to shore them up.
Quarterback Drew Brees did his part to hold things together for the Saints, becoming the fourth player ever to throw for 60,000 career yards. But Brees took some heavy knocks, particularly a foot injury in Week 15, that limited his output. But it was always an uphill battle for the offence as the Saints' porous defence let them down, never more so in a humiliating 47-14 blowout at the hands of Washington in Week 10 when Kirk Cousins ran amok.
Star player: Aged 37, Brees is still holding the Saints together. A total of 32 touchdowns, by his standards, is nowhere near a stellar year but it's more than any other player in New Orleans could boast.
Grade: Somehow the Saints didn't prop up the rest of the NFC South and finished third which isn't bad considering their shocking defence.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 6-10
Judging anything requires context, so despite the Bucs' position at the bottom of the NFC South they deserve due credit for a marked improvement. In 2014 they went 2-14 but, by the eighth week of 2015, had already improved on that.
Their campaign began with the draft acquisition of Jameis Winston, the Florida State quarterback, who threw 22 touchdowns and 15 interceptions in a decent rookie year. The Buccaneers, in December, held a 6-6 record and stood a chance of a shock play-off qualification but stumbled to four straight losses to end their season. It meant they finished last in the division for a fifth straight year, and it cost Lovie Smith his job as head coach.
Star player: Despite the quality of the team, running back Doug Martin finished second in the NFL in rushing yards behind Adrian Peterson. He scored seven touchdowns.
Grade: You can't give the Buccaneers an F after a fairly significant improvement from the previous year, but they still fall short of the required standard in the NFL. It's a D.
