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We're going to play the "What If" game for a moment. The Cowboys placed the franchise tag on Anthony Spencer, costing them $10.6 million. If the Cowboys had let Spencer test the free agent market, that's at least 10.6 million that could have gone ...

Football Outsiders is doing a league-wide series of posts called "Red Flags," which take a look at the biggest remaining issue facing each team. Today's Insider post is on the NFC South and I'll break it up into four smaller posts to explore the red ...

It's trendy and fun to debate which NFC South team has the best offense. Is it Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints or Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons? Heck, you can even look at all the offensive talent Carolina and Tampa Bay have and throw th...

The Atlanta Falcons let go of John Abraham before the start of free agency. It might be time for their fans to finally let Abraham go. The veteran defensive end remains an unsigned free agent. Recent tweets suggesting he was retiring were quickly ...

Let's have a little fun and look back at the latter stages of the NFL draft. I'm going to pick one player from each team who was drafted after the third round that might end up getting significant playing time as a rookie. ATLANTA FALCONS De...

The fifth round of the NFL draft is over, so let's take a look at what the NFC South teams did. At No. 144, the New Orleans Saints selected Oklahoma wide receiver Kenny Stills. The Saints have Marques Colston and Lance Moore, but they're revamping...

Let's take a quick look at what the NFC South teams did in the fourth round: At No. 100, Tampa Bay traded up to get Illinois defensive tackle Akeem Spence. I like the pick because it addresses a need. The Bucs have Gerald McCoy at one defensive ta...

With Osi Umenyiora leaving for the Atlanta Falcons in free agency, the New York Giants needed to replenish their pass rush pantry. They don't need an immediate starter (which is good, because they don't love trying to draft those), because they can m...

We continue our pre-draft rankings of position-group needs with the defensive line. Remember, the earlier the ranking, the greater the need. Carolina Panthers: They're in good shape with Greg Hardy and Charles Johnson as the starting defensive ...

I owe a debt of gratitude to Atlanta general manager Thomas Dimitroff as I prepare to make the Falcons' first pick in the Blog Network mock draft next week. Although there are countless variables that could play out before Atlanta picks at No. 30,...

Matt Ryan isn't focusing on contract talks as he appears destined to become the NFL's next $100 million quarterback.

The fine folks at ESPN Stats & Information never cease to amaze me with the nuggets they pass along. They recently sent us some pre-draft stuff, and one item really jumped off the page. It took SMU defensive end Margus Hunt an average of 2....

Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Ware, minus the arm brace he used at the Super Bowl to help in the healing of a shoulder surgery, was a guest on NBC Sports Network on Friday. Ware said he tried to recruit then-free agent defensive end Osi Um...

Let's take a run through some odds and ends from around the division: TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS The Bucs have made a lot of minor moves lately, and Stephen Holder writes that they're building depth and competition. The added depth is particularly im...

Time for a run through some odds and ends from around the division: ATLANTA FALCONS In this Insider post, Matt Williamson has his grades for how teams have fared in free agency so far. He gives the Falcons the highest grade in the NFC South. No...

The deal defensive end Osi Umenyiora signed with the Atlanta Falcons last week is salary-cap friendly. I just got a look at the official numbers on the two-year deal that's worth $8.5 million. Umenyiora will cost the Falcons $3.75 million against ...