NFC South Check-In: Atlanta Falcons

At the end of the 2023 season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had won their third straight NFC South title, with a 9-8 record that stood up through the tiebreakers to top the 9-8 New Orleans Saints. The Atlanta Falcons were third in the division at 7-10.

By the time the 2024 season rolled around, the Falcons were widely considered the favorites to win the division, and that shift was mostly due to one reason: the signing of veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins. In one way, Cousins did shift the balance of power between the Buccaneers and Falcons because his best two games of the season were in Atlanta’s sweep of Tampa Bay. Overall, however, Cousins eventually lost his starting job to rookie Michael Penix and the Falcons’ year-over-year improvement was a modest one win to finish 8-9. The Buccaneers won their fourth straight NFC South crown at 10-7.

What will the narrative for the NFC South be in 2025? Will the Buccaneers be able to sustain their success of the 2020s? Will the Falcons thrive under Penix in Raheem Morris’s second season at the helm? Can the Saints rebound from a 5-12 season under new Head Coach Kellen Moore? Are the Dave Canales-led Panthers a team on the rise given the improved play of young quarterback Bryce Young?

We won’t know the answers until we’re well into the 2025 season, but public opinion will surely be swayed by the developments of the offseason, just as they were when Cousins landed in Atlanta last March. Therefore, it’s worth keeping an eye on what is going on in Atlanta, Charlotte and New Orleans throughout the offseason. We will do that with our “NFC South Check-Ins.” This is an updated version of an article originally published in February, now including the very important results of the 2025 draft as we consider the immediate future of the Bucs’ rivals from Georgia.

News/Developments Since End of 2024 Season:

The big changes on the Falcons’ coaching staff happened a year ago, when Arthur Smith was dismissed after three seasons at the helm, all of which finished with 7-10 records. Former Buccaneers Head Coach Raheem Morris, more recently the defensive coordinator for the Rams, got his second shot at the corner office and brought in Zac Robinson and Jimmy Lake as his coordinators.

Robinson will continue to guide the Falcons’ offense in 2025 after it finished sixth in the overall yardage rankings in 2024, including fifth in passing and 10th in rushing. However, the Falcons fired Lake on…