Canal Street Chronicles
The Bucs have done it; they have won a game by more than one score. This was a big matchup between two 4-1 teams, with the 49ers traveling to Tampa Bay. This game was close, but two turnovers from San Francisco 49ers QB Mac Jones seemed to be the difference, and Baker Mayfield took advantage of this. He had an extremely impressive game with many of his top passing options unavailable. For each edition so far of State of the NFCS, I have been looking for the Bucs to really take advantage of opportunities and have a truly impressive win, and this game was just that. Tampa Bay will be truly competitive this year.
Last week, the Falcons were on their bye, coming off a good win against the Washington Commanders. Hope was to create a win streak and extend to keep up with first place in the division. Their opponent, the Bills, was not going to be an easy win, but ever since Buffalo’s game against the Saints, they have been struggling. In this game against the Falcons, Josh Allen threw two interceptions, and the run defense was horrible against Bijan Robinson. QB Michael Penix also had a really strong game, which has been the case since the Falcons made some coaching changes.
The last team to win in the division this week was the Carolina Panthers, and like in the Falcons game, bad defense was the difference. The Dallas Cowboys have had a great offense this year, but defense has been the main issue. The Panthers could not stop the pass game, and Dak Prescott is looking like an MVP-level player. This should not have been a game this team loses, but again, the Cowboys’ defense was not good enough. Even with QB Bryce Young’s struggles this year, he looked great in this game, and RB Rico Dowdle completed the revenge game, finishing with 183 rushing yards. The Panthers are having a better-than-expected start to the season.
Out of the four NFC South teams that played this week, the Saints were the only team that lost. Again, it was a close final score, but due to an unbelievably disappointing first half performance from the defense, and pass catchers for the Saints giving the game away, a comeback could not be made. QB Spencer Rattler may have had the best game of his young career, and at one point, was throw-for-throw against fellow 2024 draft class QB Drake Maye. This was a demorilizing loss for the Saints, and one that exposed some of the larger issues with this team, but now it is time to improve, and move onto the next game.
Current NFC South Standings
