Are The Saints Odds To Win The NFC South The Best Value?

• The New Orleans Saints have +210 long odds to win the NFC South.
• The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are favored at -145 to win the division.
• Saints QB Drew Brees may return for another season.

NEW ORLEANS – Sports betting fans are already beginning to place their wagers on the 2021 NFL Season, with early futures odds available for the divisions.

The NFC South is getting a lot of traction, as sports betting fans wager on the defending Super Bowl Champions Tampa Bay Buccaneers to win the division.

The New Orleans Saints won the division last season and depending on the decision made by veteran QB Drew Brees, placing action on the Saints to win the NFC South may be a good bet.

NFC South Betting

With the success Super Bowl bettors got with taking the Buccaneers to win last season, it makes sense that most NFC South bettors are also putting action on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Odds To Win The NFC South

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers -145
• New Orleans Saints +210
• Carolina Panthers +900
• Atlanta Falcons +1000

The Buccaneers will likely be coming back with the core team they won the Super Bowl with, including star QB Tom Brady. Other key players like Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown are also likely to return with new deals.

What long-shot bettors should note, however, is that the best record in the NFC South came from the Drew Brees led Saints, and New Orleans could come back next season strong and play to reclaim the division.

One of the bigger skepticism that sports betting fans may be facing is how the Saints will fair at the QB position, with heavy hints towards Drew Brees’s retirement.

Brees led the Saints to an 11-5 record, only to lose in the postseason to the Buccaneers. Brees also suffered from injuries including a torn rotary cuff, broken ribs, and collapsed lung.

While many may expect the 42-year-old veteran to retire, Brees could very well attempt to run in back one more season.

The Saints were a solid team both offensively and defensively last season, averaging 30.0 points per game while allowing 21.1 points on the other end. The team was also strong in protecting against the run, only allowing 85 rushing 1st downs all season.

Whether Brees retires or not, New Orleans will still have RB Alvin Kamara who led the team in both rushing yards and receiving yards, and saw 16 touchdowns on the season; tying for second in the league.

On the defensive end linebacker Demario Davis will also be returning, and safety Malcolm Jenkins as well. The strong defense should continue to be dominant next season.

Plug Brees back in for another season, the Saints have a legitimate contender to win the Super Bowl, not just the division. But what if Brees retires?

There are still a few options the Saints have. Jameis Winston is still signed to New Orleans and could possibly earn the starting spot. Winston is infamously known for his turnover to touchdown rate, so the team would see a clear decline at the QB position with him.

Out on the market, there are names like Ryan Fitzpatrick who had a solid season for the Miami Dolphins last year, Cam Newton who could benefit from the receivers on the Saints, and Andy Dalton who could walk away from the Dallas Cowboys and would fit right in as a pocket QB on the Saints.

While none of these options could replace Brees and have the same output, the core of the team is strong enough to benefit from a number of QBs and have fans betting on the New Orleans Saints  capitalizing on the +210 longshot odds.

Other NFC South Teams

The Carolina Panthers and the Atlanta Falcons also have longshot odds to win the division, but these teams have a long way to go.

The Falcons in particular have struggles on the defensive end that caused them to blow multiple leads last season. The Falcons do, however, have a top-five draft pick they can play with.

Atlanta could do a few things, trade the pick for assets, trade down in the draft for assets while also claiming a few first-round picks, or keep the pick and potentially draft a new franchise player.

Should someone like Justin Fields remain on the board by the fourth pick, the Falcons could select a potential franchise QB.

And if Fields is able to excel with the new coach and the new GM is able to build in the off-season, then there is a slight chance the Falcons could be good enough to claim the division.

This is unlikely, however as the Falcons will be relying too heavily on a rookie, especially with QB Matt Ryan still on the team.

The Panthers have the eighth overall pick, but the team suffers in multiple positions similar to the Falcons and will likely be a bad bet for those betting on the Carolina Panthers.