Why the NFC South Is the Best Division in the NFL

Earlier today, ESPN.com released their Preseason Edition of their NFL Power Rankings. There were very few noticeable surprises, and it's hard to really sort out any type of rankings with seeing any preseason football. 

But like all rankings typically do, it is great for stirring up debate. One of the more interesting debates has to be whether or not the NFC South is the best division in the NFL. 

Of course, everyone will have their own opinion on which is best. Some will say the AFC East, which features the 14-2 New England Patriots and the New York Jets, who played in the AFC Championship game.

Others will point to the AFC North, considering the division has both the Steelers and Ravens and a potential dark-horse team in the Cleveland Browns. Some may even claim the NFC East is the best, as the Philadelphia Eagles have assembled a "dream team" and both the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys have respectable rosters. 

And really, each and every one of these arguments has legs. You can make a reasonable claim that any of those divisions are better or worse than the other.

But for the sake of this argument, I'm pitting two of the divisions I think are best—the NFC North and the NFC South—against each other to find who really has the better division. 

I'll stack the four teams in each division up against other individually, which hopefully keeps this as unbiased as possible. Let's get to it. 

 

1. Green Bay Packers vs. New Orleans Saints

Yes, I know neither of these two teams won their respective division last season. That doesn't matter. 

The Packers and Saints are the last two Super Bowl champions, and I will treat them as such. Each have loaded rosters, complete with high-powered offenses led by young quarterbacks and attacking defenses that create turnovers. They each have head coaches with brilliant offensive minds, and each possess defensive coordinators who have long track records of success on that side of the ball. 

With all these factors in mind, I'm calling this a wash. It's tough to separate these two teams. 

ADVANTAGE: EVEN

2. Chicago Bears vs. Atlanta Falcons

And wouldn't you know it, we have the NFC's top two seeds from a year ago as the No. 2 matchup in this argument. Again, doesn't matter. 

The Falcons have stockpiled an impressive collection of talent on the offensive side of the ball, while the Bears are still one of the elite defensive teams in the NFL. Both have deficiencies on the opposite sides of the ball, with the Falcons' suspect secondary and the Bears' struggles on the offensive line.

I would have given the Falcons the edge last season if they met in the NFC Championship game, and I think they have gotten considerably better over the offseason than the Bears. The Bears went farther in the playoffs, but that was only by virtue of opponent.

ADVANTAGE: NFC SOUTH

3. Detroit Lions vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

This might be the most intriguing matchup of the two divisions. 

Both teams are up-and-coming teams with young, talented rosters. Both have coaches who took on the challenge of resurrecting their respective franchise and have done well up to this point. 

There's just one difference between these two right now: One has got it done in the regular season; the other hasn't. The Bucs won 10 games last season and nearly snuck into the playoffs, while the Lions went 6-10 and tied the Vikings for last in the North. 

And I know the Lions beat the Buccaneers last season with a backup quarterback. I get that. The Lions have yet to prove they can put that kind of effort out throughout the course of 16 games. 

ADVANTAGE: NFC SOUTH

4. Minnesota Vikings vs. Carolina Panthers

Another intriguing matchup, as both the Vikings and Panthers have several things in common. 

The Vikings drafted their next franchise quarterback, as did the Panthers. Carolina has a new head coach, and so does Minnesota. Both will likely be behind the eight ball as the regular season opens because of the impact the lockout causes teams in transition periods. 

Overall, however, the Vikings have the better roster. They are two years removed from winning 13 games and advancing to the NFC Championship game. The Panthers are fresh off a 2-14 season. 

And even though the Vikings went through one of the more laughable off-field seasons in team history, they still won six games. I like how the Panthers have begun their rebuild, but this was an easy choice for me. 

ADVANTAGE: NFC NORTH

CONCLUSION

Based on the stacking of the four teams, the NFC South looks like the better division, but not by much.

But you want to know the best part? The preseason hasn't even begun—we really don't have a clue. We can only base this argument on what we've seen last season and through this offseason. Things can change in a hurry.

One thing is for certain, however. These two divisions face off this season. It's the NFC North vs. NFC South, a battle for what could be the best division in football. 

It all kicks off September 8 when the Saints come to Lambeau Field to take on the Packers. There's nothing like settling an argument on the football field.