Atlanta Falcons
Offensive line
Second-year receiver Calvin Ridley was the first potential breakout candidate that popped into my head. Then I thought about the Falcons' re-tooled offensive line. Injuries and the resulting disappointing play in 2018 obviously made the position group the focus of the offseason. Guards James Carpenter and Jamon Brown were added in free agency. Guard Chris Lindstrom and tackle Kaleb McGary were selected in the first round. The team double-dipped in free agency and the first round. That's a commitment to change. Left tackle Jake Matthews and center Alex Mack are the only returnees secure in their starting future. The projected Falcons line looks something like this.
| LT | Jake Matthews |
| LG | James Carpenter |
| C | Alex Mack |
| RG | Chris Lindstrom |
| RT | Kaleb McGary |
If that rookie right-side transitions nicely this could be a top-flight group. And free agent addition Jamon Brown provides a bit of depth in case a hint of the injury issues continues into this season. The Falcons need this group to be intact and keep quarterback Matt Ryan safe.
Carolina Panthers
Brian Burns, DE
It's tough to put "need to break out" status on a rookie but I'm doing it. The Panthers now have a snappy-looking interior rotation of Dontari Poe, Gerald McCoy, Kawann Short, and Vernon Butler. That's four former first-round picks manning the interior. The Panthers didn't really have much of an outside pass-rushing presence. Brian Burns was selected in the first round to change that. He was one of the best pure pass rushers in the draft. The only question to his pass rushing game is his size. He played in the 220s in college. He boosted his weight to the 240s for the draft evaluation process. He's yet to show that he can get to the quarterback at that weight. Let alone doing any of that at any weight at the NFL level. The Panthers need Brian Burns to do for them what he did in college.
New Orleans Saints
Marcus Davenport, DE
The Saints paid a hefty price to move up in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft to select Marcus Davenport, a raw defensive end from itty-bitty University of Texas-San Antonio. The Saints have built a potent defensive front.
| DE | Cameron Jordan |
| DT | Sheldon Rankins |
| DT | Malcolm Brown |
| DE | Marcus Davenport |
Cameron Jordan is one of best, most complete defensive ends in the league. And he went to Cal. Go Bears! The Saints needed a pass rusher to play opposite Jordan. That's why the Saints decided that they had to trade a future #1 to swap first round picks with the Green Bay Packers in order to secure Davenport. He wasn't going to make it to the Saints' pick. He wasn't expected to make it to the Packers' pick. Davenport had some moments as a rookie that made the Saints giddy for his potential. In his second season, they need Marcus Davenport to be the sort of pass rushing presence off the edge that Jordan already is.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Bruce Arians, head coach
Bruce Arians is a terrific football coach. He's such a terrific coach that he was once named Coach of the Year when he wasn't even the head coach. The Buccaneers have a talented offense. They have some intriguing players on defense. The team can be a contender or picking first in the 2020 NFL Draft. How it all plays out depends greatly on the coaching of Arians. He's been coaching since 1975. He decided that he'd been coaching long enough in 2017. A year later, he decides that he hasn't coached long enough. In my opinion, the success of the Buccaneers in 2019 is completely dependent on whether Arians is as invested in coaching now as he was when he took over the Arizona Cardinals in 2013.
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