NFL DRAFT NEEDS: NFC SOUTH

The NFC South was brutal in 2022. Every team finished under .500 and it wasn’t pretty getting there. The Buccaneers have seen TB12 set sail into retirement and their playoff hopes might have been onboard. The Saints have a veteran roster, but Derek Carr might keep their Cajun playoff hopes strolling down Bourbon Street. The Falcons were improved in 2021, but this draft could be the next step in the rebuild. The Panthers are starting another rebuild, but this one might actually be done correctly. They have a loaded coaching staff and own the top pick in the draft.

I have laid out the current state of each franchise in the NFC South below. We’ll review their current issues, draft needs and draft prospect targets for their first draft selection in 2023. The Panthers will draft a QB at #1, but which one? The Falcons need help on defense and offensive line, so they are in a great spot. The Saints got back into the First Round courtesy of trading Sean Payton to Denver. They’ll be drafting at the bottom of the round, so a lot of options are in play. The Buccaneers might be bold and trade up for a quarterback, but they have many roster holes to fill.

If you are looking for positional rankings of the draft eligible players on offense and defense, we have you covered at Spinnable Sports. You can also find my Top 105 NFL Draft Prospects and Mock Draft 2.0: 3 Round Mock Draft in the same spot. The Irrational Confidence Podcast (@IRConfidencePod on Twitter) will be dropping our Live Mock Draft Episode very soon. You can find The Irrational Confidence Podcast on any podcast platform as well as the Spinnable Sports YouTube Channel.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS:

CURRENT ISSUES:

• NO MORE TOM BRADY
• SALARY CAP ISSUES…PER OverTheCap.com, THE BUCS ARE 31ST IN CAP SPACE WITH $1.879 MILLION AVAILABLE, BUT REALLY THEY ARE OVER THE CAP BY $1.345 MILLION IN EFFECTIVE CAP SPACE.
• LB DEVON WHITE REQUESTED A TRADE
• OL HEALTH & DEPTH
• TE DEPTH

TEAM DRAFT NEEDS:

• OL
• S
• CB
• TE
• QB
• LB

TARGETS FOR 1ST RD SELECTION:

• QB. WILL LEVIS. (KENTUCKY)
• QB. ANTHONY RICHARDSON (FLORIDA)
• OT. DARNELL WRIGHT. (TENNESSEE)
• OT. DAWAND JONES. (OHIO STATE)
• C/OG. O’CYRUS TORRENCE. (FLORIDA)
• S. BRIAN BRANCH. (ALABAMA)
• TE. DARNELL WASHINGTON. (GEORGIA)

CAROLINA PANTHERS:

CURRENT ISSUES:

• OL DEPTH
• DL DEPTH
• LB DEPTH
• EXPECTATIONS FOR THE TOP PICK TO BE THE FRANCHISE LEADER

TEAM DRAFT NEEDS:

• QB
• WR
• OL
• DL

TARGETS FOR 1ST RD SELECTION:

• QB. BRYCE YOUNG. (ALABAMA)
• QB. CJ STROUD. (OHIO STATE)
• QB. ANTHONY RICHARDSON. (FLORIDA)

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS:

CURRENT ISSUES:

• ALVIN KAMARA SITUATION STEMMING FROM VEGAS INCIDENT DURING JANUARY 2022 PRO BOWL…WILL THERE BE A SUSPENSION ?
• CAN MICHAEL THOMAS RETURN TO 2018 / 2019 FORM?
• CAN CAM JORDAN, DEMARIO DAVIS, TYRANN MATHIEU AND MARSHON LATTIMORE KEEP THIS TEAM PLAYING AT A HIGH LEVEL?
• DL DEPTH
• OL DEPTH
• LB DEPTH
• SECONDARY DEPTH
• WR DEPTH

TEAM DRAFT NEEDS:

• OL
• DL
• EDGE
• CB
• LB
• WR
• TE

TARGETS FOR 1ST RD SELECTION:

• DL. CALIJAH KANCEY. (PITTSBURGH)
• DL. BRYAN BREESE. (CLEMSON)
• TE. DALTON KINCAID. (UTAH)
• TE. DARNELL WASHINGTON. (GEORGIA)
• C/ OG. O’CYRUS TORRENCE. (FLORIDA)
• WR. JOSH DOWNS. (UNC)
• CB. CAM SMITH. (SOUTH CAROLINA)
• CB. KELEE RINGO. (GEORGIA)
• CB. EMMANUEL FORBES. (MISSISSIPPI STATE)

ATLANTA FALCONS:

CURRENT ISSUES:

• IS DESMOND RIDDER THE PRESENT AND FUTURE AT QB?
• OL DEPTH
• WR DEPTH
• LB DEPTH
• ARE JEFF OKUDAH AND MIKE HUGHES THE SOLUTION TO THE SECONDARY ISSUES?

TEAM DRAFT NEEDS:

• CB
• OL
• LB
• EDGE
• WR

TARGETS FOR 1ST RD SELECTION:

• CB. JOEY PORTER JR. (PENN STATE)
• CB. DEVON WITHERSPOON. (ILLINOIS)
• CB. CHRISTIAN GONZALEZ. (OREGON)
• EDGE. NOLAN SMITH. (GEORGIA)
• EDGE. TYREE WILSON. (TEXAS TECH)
• WR. JAXON SMITH-NJIGBA. (OHIO STATE)
• OT. BRODERICK JONES. (GEORGIA)
• OT. PETER SKORONSKI. (NORTHWESTERN)
• OT. PARIS JOHNSON JR. (OHIO STATE)

This is the seventh installment of my draft need odyssey through the 8 NFL divisions. The next installment will be the NFC West. If you’re looking for the AFC and other NFC divisions, checkout Spinnable Sports.