NFC South Offseason Previews
The Panthers are "NFC South good," but not "really good." The Saints are out of cap hell and into cap purgatory. The Bucs are aging before our eyes. The Falcons are the Falcons.
So far in our offseason preview series, each team has merited its own post:
- Dallas Cowboys: How will Jerrah screw up the George Pickens situation?
- New York Giants: Slide, Jaxson, slide!
- Philadelphia Eagles: No one wants to be here anymore.
- Washington Commanders: The purge is already underway.
- Chicago Bears: The reeducation of Caleb Williams.
- Detroit Lions: Dan Campbell will leave the 2026 season either carrying his shield or carried on it.
- Green Bay Packers: Treading water with all their might.
- Minnesota Vikings: J.J. McCarthy is neither Mr. Right nor Mr. Right Now.
The NFC South, however is special. So the Falcons, Panthers, Saints and Buccaneers will huddle together in one feature for warmth and mutual protection. And because I just could not bear to create a separate post just for the Falcons.
Atlanta Falcons Offseason Preview
2025 Season in a Nutshell
Michael Penix went from adequate to shaky to startled by loud noises to seriously injured. Kirk Cousins dragged himself off the bench like a dad sent to fetch the teenagers from the police station after a kegger got busted. Bijan Robinson single-handedly upset the Bills and Rams. The Falcons couldn’t climb back into the playoff chase, but they had fun dragging the Buccaneers down into the bushel with them.
Then Arthur Blank got mad and fired everyone. EVERYONE.
Coaching Situation
After dealing with Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders, Cousins and Penix will look like 1989 Joe Montana and Steve Young to Kevin Stefanski.
Feel free to be skeptical about Stefanski and his 8-26 record over the last two years. But he has won two Coach of the Year awards and turns just 44 years old in May. If Vince Lombardi were tasked with coaching the 2024-25 Browns, he would have become a television repairman instead.
Stefanski liberated offensive coordinator Tommy Rees from Cleveland, then rescued Tanner Engstrand (a former Dan Campbell-Ben Johnson acolyte) from the Jets. Never have more offensive coaches been more enthusiastic about the opportunity of joining an eight-win team. Jeff Ulbrich survived the purge and remains defensive coordinator.
Matt Ryan replaced Rich McKay in the role of Big Alpha Football Guy Behind the Curtain; that may be his official title. Ryan is the most Falcons Falcon to ever Falcon. Blank should be sacrificing Ryan to a volcano, not giving him administrative power.
Ryan hired former Bears exec Ian Cunningham as his general manager, creating a buffer between himself and accountability for any specific decisions. Ryan, ever a student of the game, studied McKay’s film carefully.
Quarterback Situation
Penix underwent ACL surgery on November 25th. It was his third ACL tear, though it’s his first on his left knee. Maybe the symmetry will help his biomechanics.
Penix was effective when heavily scaffolded but turned into a flibbertigibbet when rattled. He’s J.J. McCarthy with less schadenfreude and better running backs.
