Claiming The South: The 2009 Atlanta Falcons

Winning your division is often the first goal on a team's way to hopefully getting its hands on the Vince Lombardi trophy. And if things play out similarly to how they did last season, no division may be more hotly contested than the NFC South this season.

The Carolina Panthers have often been the class of the division in recent years, featuring the best wide receiver in the league in Steve Smith, one of the league's premier defenders in Julius Peppers, and a solid field general in Jake Delhomme. But I believe this is a season where the Panthers take a step back and finish 9-7, after a 12-4 season a year ago.

The New Orleans Saints may not play a lick of defense but their offense has been mouthwatering ever since the arrivals of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush, and Marques Colston.

That's been enough to keep them in games the last few seasons and it will keep them in the running for the division crown until the final weeks of this year. I think another 8-8 season is in the works.

The Buccaneers were on the cusp of a second consecutive playoff appearance until things fell apart at the close of the season. With a new head coach in Raheem Morris, things could go one of two ways; Tampa Bay could surprise us all and win the NFC South or they could flounder as Morris, 32, struggles in his transition to head coach. I'm going with the latter. 6-10.

The Falcons were a Cinderella story last season, and there were a bevy of reasons why they should have been nothing more than 3-13 a year ago. But this same group is now returning one year older (especially important for young quarterback Matt Ryan) and with a shiny new toy (Tony Gonzalez).

The Falcons won't quite live up to their lofty expectations but they'll tell the tale of how the South was won. 10-6.