NFC South Odds: Will Kirk Cousins Lead the Falcons to a Division Title?

The 2024-25 NFL season is shaping up to be an exciting one with the endless roster moves that took place during the offseason. One of the most notable moves of the offseason saw Kirk Cousins join the Atlanta Falcons, making Atlanta the favorites to sit atop the NFC South when it's all said and done.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers secured the division title last season to make it three consecutive years where they held the best record in the NFC South. It was a disappointing 2023-24 campaign for the New Orleans Saints while the Carolina Panthers are going to look quite a bit different next season upon going 2-15 a campaign ago, which is the fewest wins in franchise history since 2010.

With offseason programs getting underway around the league, FanDuel Sportsbook is offering a variety of markets -- via their NFL odds -- for NFL win totals, odds to make the NFL playoffs, and NFL division odds among others. Let's take a look at the odds and outlooks for each team in the NFC South ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.

All NFL odds are from FanDuel Sportsbook, and they may change after this article is published.

NFC South Odds

Atlanta Falcons 2024 Outlook

Projected Win Total: 9.5 (-148 on the over)
Odds to Make the Playoffs: -250
Odds to Win the NFC South: -120
Odds to Win the NFC: +1100
Odds to Win the Super Bowl: +2400 (tied for 11th-best)

Once again, the most notable move that occurred within the NFC South during the offseason was the Falcons adding Cousins to an offense that already featured Drake London, Bijan Robinson, and Kyle Pitts. Robinson, heading into Year 2, is tied for the eighth-best odds to win NFL Offensive Player of the Year (+2500) in 2024-25.

Aside from naming Cousins the new franchise signal-caller, Atlanta also hired Raheem Morris as the team's new head coach and questionably selected Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Ideally, the Falcons would likely prefer to have Penix sit behind Cousins for the next couple of years before taking over as the starter, but for 2024, the Falcons should have a solid backup QB ready to jump in if needed.

While the Falcons are favored to take the division in 2024-25, it is worth noting that Cousins is recovering from a season-ending Achilles injury. Additionally, Atlanta hasn't won the NFC South since the organization lost the Super Bowl during the 2016-2017 campaign (insert 28-3 meme here).

Assuming Cousins can return to form from his injury, it's hard to argue against the Falcons being the best team in the NFC South.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2024 Outlook

Projected Win Total: 7.5 (-150 on the over)
Odds to Make the Playoffs: +142
Odds to Win the NFC South: +290
Odds to Win the NFC: +3000
Odds to Win the Super Bowl: +5500 (tied for 20th-best)

Following their third straight division title, the Buccaneers retained Baker Mayfield and Mike Evans in the offseason. At the same time, Tampa Bay watched Dave Canales be named the next head coach of the Panthers, pitting them against their former offensive coordinator twice a year for the foreseeable future.

To replace Canales, the Buccaneers have brought in Liam Coen -- who had success coaching Mayfield during his short stint with the Los Angeles Rams. On the defensive side of the ball, things could be a bit different with Carlton Davis and Devin White no longer in the picture.

At the very least, Tampa Bay also brought back Lavonte David and Greg Gaines along with signing Jordan Whitehead and Randy Gregory. The Buccaneers also inked Antoine Winfield Jr. to a long-term extension, keeping their All-Pro safety for another four years.

While Tampa Bay has won eight-plus games in each of the last four seasons, the changes at offensive coordinator and on defense could pave the way for another team to dethrone them in the division race.

New Orleans Saints 2024 Outlook

Projected Win Total: 7.5 (-130 on the over)
Odds to Make the Playoffs: +180
Odds to Win the NFC South: +340
Odds to Win the NFC: +4000
Odds to Win the Super Bowl: +8000 (tied for 23rd-best)

It's tough to get overly excited for the Saints entering the 2024-25 season, but as FanDuel Research's Brandon Gdula pointed out, New Orleans has the third-easiest schedule going by opponent win totals. Derek Carr remains the starting signal-caller for the Saints while Alvin Kamara and Chris Olave are expected to maintain sizable roles.

According to Next Gen Stats, Olave and Kamara combined for a 44.2% target share in Carr's first year at the helm. There's a chance second-year back Kendre Miller receives an expanded workload, and Rashid Shaheed could see more looks with Michael Thomas headed elsewhere.

Besides retaining the likes of Demario Davis and Tyrann Mathieu, the Saints are hoping to receive a boost on defense upon signing Chase Young. Young tied his career-best mark of 7.5 sacks last season amidst playing in a career-high 16 games for the Washington Commanders and San Francisco 49ers.

The idea of taking the Saints to achieve eight-plus wins at -130 odds isn't a terrible one, but the path for them to be a threat in the NFC is still narrow.

Carolina Panthers 2024 Outlook

Projected Win Total: 5.5 (+122 on the over)
Odds to Make the Playoffs: +730
Odds to Win the NFC South: +1400
Odds to Win the NFC: +13000
Odds to Win the Super Bowl: +30000 (32nd-best)

Saying the 2023-24 campaign was a disastrous one for the Panthers would be putting it lightly. Rookie quarterback Bryce Young struggled to the tune of a forgettable -0.31 expected points added per drop back and just a 39.2% passing success rate.

In Young's defense, Carolina failed to surround him with reliable weapons a season ago. Entering the upcoming campaign, the Panthers will now have Diontae Johnson and rookie first-round pick Xavier Legette for Young to target in the passing game.

Even though Carolina retained Derrick Brown on D, they lost all of Brian Burns, Donte Jackson, Frankie Luvu, Shaquill Griffin, and C.J. Henderson either via trade or in free agency in the offseason. To help replace the players mentioned, the Panthers signed Jordan Fuller, D.J. Wonnum, Jadeveon Clowney, Nick Scott, and A'Shawn Robinson.

Winning more games than last year shouldn't be too difficult for the Panthers this season, but the priority will be seeing improvement from Young in his sophomore campaign.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.