Saints Nation: Around the NFC South

In case you were curious how the other NFC South teams are doing so far, here’s a scoop:

ATLANTA FALCONS: They’re 1-1 in the preseason with a loss at Detroit 26-27 and a win at St. Louis 20-13. Team stats through 2 games can be found HERE. Looks like Ryan is looking sharp, and they are running the ball extremely well. On the injury side they’ve lost receiver Harry Douglas for the season, but replaced him with veteran Marty Booker.

CAROLINA PANTHERS: They’re 0-2 in the preseason with losses at the Giants 17-24 and at Miami 17-27. Oddly both the Falcons and Panthers have been on the road for their first 2 games and will close out their last 2 at home. Team stats through 2 games can be found HERE. Looks like the quarterback play has been mediocre and they’re running the ball well. As it’s been well documented, the Panthers can’t really afford injuries because they are completely strapped for cash. Julius Peppers’ one year franchise tag contract has completely handcuffed them and if injuries mount on them they’ll be in big trouble because they won’t be able to afford suitable veteran replacements. What’s more they’ve already lost run stopping star Maake Kemoeatu for the season and his replacements have looked terrible thus far.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: They’re 1-1, and they’ve also started with 2 games on the road. Tampa lost 20-27 at Tennessee and won 24-23 at Jacksonville. Team stats through 2 games can be found HERE. So far Luke McCown looks like he’ll be their starter as he’s outperformed the others. It will be interesting to see who starts week 1 between him and Byron Leftwhich, and who starts as the season progresses. Mike Nugent has missed a couple kicks already in 2 games, and they’ve average 2.7 yards on 6 punt returns. It was announced 2 days ago they also lost starting linebacker Angelo Crowell for the season.