2010 NFL Predictions: NFC South

The NFC South would be more aptly named if it were called 'The New Orleans Saints and 3 Other Teams'. But, DBSF Maaattttt Ryan? Sure, Matt Ryan is promising but, he's promising in the sense that he can keep the Falcons out of Five-and-Elevenville. The other two teams' quarterbacks are Matt Moore and Josh Freeman. Considering that those two guy's little brothers don't even play with them on Madden should tell you something about the aura of confidence surrounding them.

1. New Orleans Saints (12-4)
Out of the division they have to go to Baltimore, Dallas, and Cincinnati, and at home they have the Vikings and the Ravens. Ergo, this team ain't winning 13 straight to start off the season, like they did last year. On another note, it will be interesting to see how the break-up with reality celeb Kim Kardashian affects Reggie Bush. Actually, no, no it will not be interesting at all.

2. Atlanta Falcons (10-6)
The problem with the Falcons last year? They're success in 2008 led to a much tougher schedule that resulted in losses to 6 good teams and the Panthers. This year's schedule is a little lighter but they still have Pittsburgh and Philadelphia on the road. Their other problem? Pass defense. Their answer? Dunta Robinson. That qualifies for one more win in 2010 for DBSF.

3. Carolina Panthers (6-10)
The Panthers finished last season with wins over Minnesota, the Saints, and blowing out the Giants at the Meadowlands. They started weak and suffered from a tough schedule and Jake Delhomme throwing an astounding 18 pics to only 8 TDs. In the first day of the 2010 draft they picked up Jimmy Clausen, and two WRs, one of which played at perennial powerhouse Appalachian State. In the off season they lost Julius Peppers to the Bears and replaced him with 6th round pick Greg Hardy out of Mississippi. That's like replacing Albert Pujols with Billy Ripken. Verdict? The Panthers are headed for a drop-off.

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-12)
The Bucs won 3 games last year. They should have won 1. They used their first two picks on D-tackles to address the fact that they were last in run defense last season. The bigger problem was rookie QB Josh Freeman. DBSF just confirmed that he was throwing with his correct hand, and that he wasn't in some sort of covert competition with division rival Jake Delhomme to see who could throw the most interceptions and the fewest TDs. Why 4 wins then? They play the Browns, Rams, Lions, and Seahawks at home. (And, they get to go to Arizona.) The probability that all five of those games end in 0-0 ties is highly unlikely, mathematically speaking.