NFL 2018 predictions: Which team will win each division?

NFC South

1. Saints

2. Falcons

3. Panthers

4. Buccaneers

“The Minnesota Miracle” ruined the New Orleans Saints’ chances of reaching the NFC Championship Game last year. That game would’ve also been more competitive if the Saints were playing instead of the Vikings. Drew Brees is approaching 40 years of age and is still a top five quarterback in the NFL. New Orleans’ defense was very young last year and still played well. With Brees at the helm and the defense maturing, the Saints will win the NFC South.

Predicting which team will be better between Carolina and Atlanta is very difficult. Both have MVP quarterbacks and good head coaches. But what separates the Falcons from the Panthers is two things. First, Matt Ryan is more consistent week in, week out than Cam Newton. Also, Julio Jones and the Falcons’ other weapons make their offense more high-powered than Carolina’s.

That being said, Carolina isn’t far off from being at the top of this division. In fact, they had the same record as the Saints last year, who won the division. If Newton can play more like his MVP season on a week-to-week basis, Carolina could win the division in their own right.

Tampa Bay has been a team predicted to make a leap for the past couple seasons. But it seems like the performance on Sundays doesn’t match up to the talent on the roster. In addition, Jameis Winston has been suspended for the first three games of the season. If Tampa Bay can’t come out of those games with at least one win, the season will essentially be over in Week 3.