State of the NFC South: How the Panthers’ division rivals fared in Week 5

Yes, the Panthers are currently in last place — but not by much.

The NFC South race is shaping up to be a tight one, and regardless of where the Panthers currently sit in national analysts’ NFL power rankings, the Panthers are still very much in the mix in the division.

Here’s a rundown of how each of the Panthers’ division rivals fared in Week 5 and where things stand in the NFC South heading into Week 6.

NFC South standings

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (.750 win percentage)
Atlanta Falcons (.600)
New Orleans Saints (.600)
Carolina Panthers (.000)

Atlanta Falcons

Record: 3-2
Streak: W1
Next up: vs. Washington Commanders

The Falcons snapped an ugly two-game skid with a big win at home against the Houston Texans. The issues that plagued Desmond Ridder against the Lions and the Jaguars were minimized at home, and he had a career day, with 329 passing yards, one touchdown, zero interceptions, and one rushing touchdown. The biggest question facing the Falcons right now is: Can Ridder do this outside of the friendly confines of Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz stadium? We won’t find out this week, as Ridder and company take on the Commanders at home.

New Orleans Saints

Record: 3-2
Streak: W1
Next up: at Houston Texans

I don’t know that the Saints’ shutout win over the struggling New England Patriots is really indicative of this team’s potential this season. My husband is a Patriots fan, which means I have been subjected to every minute of every miserable game this season. They are just not a good football team. Mac Jones has regressed, which is especially bad news considering he wasn’t great last season. Bringing in Bill O’Brien as an actual offensive coordinator instead of just plugging Matt Patricia in there and hoping for the best hasn’t yet yielded results. There’s always a learning curve with a new coordinator, and the Patriots might look better as the season goes on, but at this point, there’s no particular pride in beating them, even in a 34-0 shutout.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Record: 3-1
Streak: W1
Next up: vs. Detroit Lions

The Buccaneers had a bye this past week, so there’s not much to report. Their Week 4 game was a win over the Saints, so we thank them for that, obviously. But I hope they don’t win another game this season (except their second Saints game). Right now, the Bucs are looking like the toughest team in the division, and that’s super annoying considering I thought we would get a break from their success with Tom Brady’s retirement. The Lions seem to be legit, so this week is going to be a tough test for them. The other legitimate contender the Bucs have faced this season was the Eagles in Week 3, a game that resulted in a 25-11 loss. I expect we’ll see something similar from them against the Lions this week. Fingers crossed!