The upcoming 2020 NFL season will be like one we have never seen. With the global pandemic COVID-19 shutting down most of the country, many feared that the NFL season may be in doubt. Due to COVID, there has been very little preparation for the upcoming season. With shortened OTA's and Mini camps, limited spring training, and no preseason games, rookie players and coaches have little to no time to get acclimated to the league. It is going to be extremely hard to have realistic expectations for many teams and players. However, I shall do my best to give you the ultimate 2020 NFL Division predictions. NFC South Edition!
NFC South:
1st: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (13-3)
No doubt this team has set extremely high expectations on their season. They added arguably the greatest Quarterback to ever play in Tom Brady! He will be paired up with 2 All Pro wide outs with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. And not to forget Brady brought along someone by the name of Rob Gronkowski, who will play along side O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate. The Offense will be loaded and I honestly do believe that once they gel, they will be nearly unstoppable(Not to mention if Antonio Brown signs too). I am going on the record here that Tom Brady will be the MVP of the 2020 NFL season... And on the defensive side of the ball they have 2019 sack king Shaq Barret, who was almost unstoppable last season. On the Defensive line they also have some nightmares named Ndamukong Suh and Jason Pier-Paul. The secondary is by far the weak link on the team, but they only have to do a good enough job of not blowing the lead, because the offense should be able to win any shoot out. Only fear is the chemistry issues the team will have at first. But with this much talent, its hard to see them struggle for long. In fact, I predict that they will be playing in the Super Bowl in Tampa.
2nd: New Orleans Saints(12-4)
The Saints are going to be extremely dominant again this season. As long as Sean Payton and Drew Brees are rolling together there is no reason for a bad season. I expect the Saints to start the year off hot. This could be Brees's last season and I fully expect him to ball out. And if Brees goes down, not to worry Jameis Winston is a great backup! Michael Thomas will lead the league in receptions again. He is the hardest player to guard in the league, without a doubt. Along side him will be the recent free agent acquisition Emanuel Sanders. I'm excited to see him play with an elite QB in Drew Brees. Alvin Kamara had a bit of a down year last season, but I expect him to get back on track and have an extremely dominant season out of the backfield. And lets not forget about Taysom Hill, the Swiss army knife of the offense. And the Defense should still be solid and in tact from last season led by the All Decade Team DE Cameron Jordan. This team has a lot of chemistry which is a great thing with such limited time to get work in.
3rd: Atlanta Falcons(7-9)
The Falcons have some solid pieces this season with Matt Ryan, Julio Jones and the new addition of Todd Gurley. I expect a decent season for Matt Ryan, he will keep steady with about 4000 yards passing to go with 30 TD's. Julio Jones I think will have another solid season. He will finish top 5 in TD's, Yards and Receptions. Across from Julio is an up and coming player who goes by Calvin Ridely. I think Calvin too will surpass the 1000 yard mark. They also added Laquon Treadwell, Im not sure where he will fit in the whole mix though. Todd Gurley I am predicting will have an unexpected season rushing for just over 1000 yards. I think he will come ready to play and the Falcons will use him to his max potential. On the defensive side of the ball they have great Defensive Lineman in Grady Jarrett, Takk McKinley and Dante Fowler. With those 3 guys bringing pressure Sundays could be hell for many opposing QB's. The secondary is relatively young with A.J. Terrell and Darqueze Dennard and Damontae Kazee . This Season I believe the Falcons will be very competitive but I don't think that they will be able to outscore or stop many of the other NFL Offense's. Specifically the Saints and the Buccaneers.
4th: Carolina Panthers(6-10)
This will be the first Season without former #1 pick Cam Newton under center, as he was released earlier this year. His replacement, Teddy Bridgewater went 5-0 last season when replacing the injured Drew Brees. I think Teddy can do some nice things, but he is not a QB that can win you a shoot out. I think Matt Rhule will make this an offense that will prove to be quite interesting, especially they way they will utilize All Pro Running back Christian McCaffery. I think McCaffery will have another season of over 1000 rushing yards and receiving yards to add to his resume. Another name to watch out for this season is wide out D.J. Moore. I think he will turn heads this year as he will be the teams leader in receiving yards and receiving TD's. Playing along side D.J. is newly acquired deep threat Robby Anderson. Anderson's speed down the field will be able to create space underneath for the rest of the offense. On the defensive side of the ball they are extremely young this season, as all drafted players were on the defensive side. Note this year there will be no All Pro Linebacker Luke Kuechly. The Defensive Unit will be led by Shaq Thompson and Kawann Short. Some young Standouts include Derrick Brown, Yetur Gross-Matos and Donte Jackson. This is a young team that will be definitely playing for a spot in the Playoffs next season.
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