The New Orleans Saints aren’t the only NFC South team to make a significant change on their staff. The Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers all did the same. Bleacher Report’s David Kenyon said the best-case scenario for the division is for all of these new hires to spark a surge of success.
There isn’t a team who comes in with the same offensive coordinator, and the Falcons and Panthers bring in new head coaches. Atlanta brings Raheem Morris back to the Falcons and Carolina stole Dave Canales from a divisional rival. Here’s Kenyon’s take:
Last season, the 9-8 Tampa Bay Buccaneers edged the New Orleans Saints on a tiebreaker to win the division. Atlanta mustered a 7-10 mark, while Carolina stunk up the joint at 2-15. Don’t expect a Super Bowl surprise, but improved coaching could make a major difference.
Canales could have the biggest ripple effects. The first-time head coach was Tampa Bay’s offensive coordinator in 2023. It’ll be interesting to see how much of Baker Mayfield’s improvement is connected to Canales’ presence. He did the same thing with Geno Smith in Seattle in 2022. Smith struggled the following year after Canales left for the Buccaneers.
Attention then turns to whether Canales can apply his Midas Touch to Bryce Young. The New Orleans Saints are also hoping their offensive coordinator has a Midas Touch effect as well. Kubiak has been commonly discussed for New Orleans and was recently called the best addition of the offseason. We’ll see the impact it has on Derek Carr, and whether it keeps No. 4 under center beyond 2024.
