The NFC South has two teams who have the potential to win the division in the season finale, the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Despite the Panthers and Buccaneers playing each other on Saturday, it may be the showdown between the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons that determines the divisional winner.
The Panthers control their own destiny. If they defeat the Buccaneers, they'll have their first winning season and playoff berth since 2017. They'll finish the season 9-8, and have sole possession of first place in the NFC South.
If the Panthers lose to the Buccaneers, things get interesting. If Carolina loses and the Saints win, the Buccaneers will yet again repeat as division champions. Because the Saints vs. Falcons has the potential to impact the divisional race, the NFL scheduled Panthers vs. Buccaneers on Saturday. If the division isn't decided Saturday, all eyes will turn to a suddenly important noon showdown.
Saints can make Panthers fans hate them even more
The disdain Panthers fans have for the Saints was an odd revelation from the season. The Saints swept the Panthers this season, and each time, the reaction from Panthers fans was disbelief. "How dare we lose to a franchise like the Saints?" was a common sentiment from that fan base. It's truly confusing because the Saints are 6-4 against Carolina over the last 10 meetings, 5-1 over the last three years.
Maybe it was victories over the Packers and Rams the week before losing to the Saints that had made the loss hit harder. Maybe it was the franchise having their best season since Cam Newton was at quarterback. It surely wasn't the head to head matchups between the teams that created a sense of superiority as a franchise. For the years, the Saints have struggled, the Panthers have been right there with them and been there longer.
Still, fans will feel how fans feel. Wouldn't it just be so funny if a Saints victory pushed the Panthers out of the playoffs. That will probably only make Panthers fans even more frustrated. The Saints may not make the playoffs but laughing at a team that cried about losing to them will be a humourous end to the season. That being said, Carolina could make all of this null in void with a victory over the Buccaneers on Sunday.