New Orleans is the favorite to win the NFC South at +120, and it shares the division lead with Carolina at 1-1 after two weeks of the 2026 season. Tampa Bay and Atlanta are both 0-2.
Carolina holds the only division win so far. The Panthers beat Atlanta 34-3 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on September 20, a week after giving up 59 points at home to Chicago.
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NFC South standings after Week 2
| Team | W-L | Points for | Points against | Home | Road | Streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carolina Panthers | 1-1 | 71 | 62 | 0-1 | 1-0 | W1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 1-1 | 54 | 48 | 0-0 | 1-1 | W1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 0-2 | 46 | 56 | 0-1 | 0-1 | L2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 0-2 | 16 | 54 | 0-1 | 0-1 | L2 |
Carolina has scored 71 points, the most in the division, and allowed 62, also the most. Atlanta has scored 16 in two games.
How each team got here
New Orleans has played both games on the road. The Saints lost 31-30 at Detroit, then won 24-17 at Baltimore, and they play their first home game of the season in Week 3. Tampa Bay lost 33-27 at Cincinnati and 23-19 at home to Cleveland, two losses by ten points combined.
Atlanta lost 20-13 at Pittsburgh before the 34-3 home loss to Carolina. The Falcons are the one NFC South team with a new head coach: Raheem Morris was fired on January 4 and Kevin Stefanski was hired on January 17. The full list of changes is on our NFL coaches fired page.
Last season was close at the top. Carolina, Atlanta and Tampa Bay all finished 8-9, and New Orleans went 6-11. Dave Canales, Kellen Moore and Todd Bowles are back as head coaches in Carolina, New Orleans and Tampa Bay.
Each team page carries its schedule and next game: New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons.
Week 3 for the NFC South
- Falcons at Packers, Thursday, September 24, 8:15 pm ET: Packers -5.5, total 43
- Panthers at Browns, Sunday, September 27, 1:00 pm ET: Panthers -2.5, total 42
- Vikings at Buccaneers, Sunday, September 27, 4:05 pm ET: Vikings -1.5, total 42.5
- Raiders at Saints, Sunday, September 27, 4:25 pm ET: Saints -3, total 43.5
Lines are the median of 11 sportsbooks as of September 24, 00:10 UTC. New Orleans and Carolina are both favored, the Saints at home against a 2-0 Las Vegas team and the Panthers on the road. Atlanta is the biggest underdog of the four, at 5.5 points in Green Bay.
NFC South division odds
| Team | Price to win the division | Chance implied by the price |
|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Saints | +120 | 45.5% |
| Carolina Panthers | +250 | 28.6% |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | +330 | 23.3% |
| Atlanta Falcons | +750 | 11.8% |
These are DraftKings prices for the 2026 season, as ESPN listed them on September 24. At +120, a $100 bet returns $120 profit, and the price says New Orleans wins the division 45.5% of the time. The four chances add up to 109.0%, and the extra 9.0 points is the book’s margin.
New Orleans finished last in the division in 2025 and is now priced first. A futures bet is worth making only when you rate a team’s chance higher than the price does, and each team has 15 games left.
The week’s game-by-game predictions sit on our NFL predictions hub.