Are Saints the NFC South’s most improved team?
The New Orleans Saints haven’t had the biggest offseason signing or the biggest departure, but they still have been active in free agency and made a plethora of key selections in the draft.
So far, the Atlanta Falcons probably made the biggest move by adding elite center Alex Mack. The Carolina Panthers suffered the worst loss as cornerback Josh Norman signed with the Washington Redskins.
But are the Saints the most improved team in the NFC South? Pro Football Focus has given that honor to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, given the key additions of Vernon Hargreaves, and Noah Spence in the draft, plus adding Robert Ayers and Daryl Smith in free agency:
“Over the last two drafts, the Buccaneers had been largely ignoring their defense. This year they drafted four defensive players and added key defensive free agents. Robert Ayers and Noah Spence will seriously increase the Buccaneers’ edge-rush production.”
Honestly, I strongly disagree with this. The Bucs have made big offseason moves the last four offseasons now, and they still haven’t been more than a team that constantly vies for a top-three pick.
The Saints have improved immensely with the additions of tight end Coby Fleener and wide receiver Michael Thomas (their second-round selection,) to give a dangerous offense even more firepower.
Nick Fairley, James Laurinaitis and Sheldon Rankins will boost one of the league’s worst pass-rushes in 2015. But despite this, it’s hard to overlook what Atlanta did.
Adding Mack and wide receiver Mohamed Sanu on offense will make Matt Ryan much better. Their pass-rush, by far the league’s worst a year ago, added Derrick Shelby, Courtney Upshaw and Sean Weatherspoon, and safety Keanu Neal could be a star in the making.
Right now, it’s safe to say Atlanta and New Orleans addressed their biggest weaknesses and both could absolutely be playoff teams. You can’t say that about the Bucs. At the end of the day, I’d easily say Atlanta looks like the most improved team in the division.
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