If you’re trying to predict an NFL team’s end-of-season record, the wrong way to do it is to bring up the schedule and pick results of each game. You simply can’t hope to predict stuff that well, and you’d be better served finding a method that assigns a percent chance of winning each game, adding up those percentages and converting it to a win/loss record. Going game-by-game is silly.
But that’s what I’m doing.
Because of that opening paragraph, what follows isn’t betting advice. It is just a look at the schedule for each NFL team in 2026 and how things might shape up for them this season. Below, check out the 2026 week-by-week results for each NFL team with some thoughts on their outlook.
NFC South below. All odds cited are per DraftKings Sportsbook.
Game-by-Game Results for 2026: NFC South
Atlanta Falcons
2025 record: 8-9 Win over/under: 7.5
| Week | Opponent | Result |
| 1 | at PIT | W |
| The Falcons get off to a good start to their 2026 season. | ||
| 2 | CAR | W |
| It’s 2-0 for Atlanta. First time since 2023, only the second since 2017. | ||
| 3 | at GB | L |
| Atlanta gets its first loss of the season in Green Bay. | ||
| 4 | at NO | L |
| The Saints pull the Falcons back to .500. | ||
| 5 | BAL | L |
| Remember when the Falcons said they weren’t going to pursue Lamar Jackson? I bet he does. | ||
| 6 | CHI | L |
| The Bears handle business at home. | ||
| 7 | SF | L |
| And with this, the formerly 2-0 Falcons fall to 2-5. | ||
| 8 | at TB | W |
| Atlanta finally gets another win by beating the Bucs. | ||
| 9 | CIN (Spain) | L |
| The Bengals beat the Falcons in Spain. | ||
| 10 | KC | W |
| Atlanta over Kansas City in the Tony Gonzalez Bowl. | ||
| 11 | BYE | |
| 12 | at MIN | W |
| The Falcons travel to Minnesota and get a post-bye win. | ||
| 13 | DET | W |
| Make it three straight for the Falcons and they’re back to 6-6. | ||
| 14 | at CLE | L |
| The Browns take down whoever is under center for Atlanta by this point. | ||
| 15 | at WAS | L |
| On the road at Washington, another loss. | ||
| 16 | TB | L |
| The Bucs get revenge on the Falcons. | ||
| 17 | NO | L |
| New Orleans sweeps Atlanta in 2026. | ||
| 18 | at CAR | L |
| That’s two five-game losing streaks for Atlanta in 2026, with a 6-1 record otherwise. | ||
Carolina Panthers
2025 record: 8-9 Win over/under: 7.5
| Week | Opponent | Result |
| 1 | CHI | L |
| After a surprise playoff berth last year, Carolina starts slow in 2026. | ||
| 2 | at ATL | L |
| Make it 0-2 for the defending NFC South champions. | ||
| 3 | at CLE | W |
| The Panthers get on the board at Cleveland. | ||
| 4 | DET | W |
| It’s two in a row for the Panthers with a surprise win over Detroit. | ||
| 5 | BYE | |
| 6 | at PHI | L |
| After a bye, the Panthers fall in Philadelphia. | ||
| 7 | TB | W |
| The Panthers take down the Buccaneers at home. | ||
| 8 | at GB | W |
| Once again, the Panthers surprise the Packers. | ||
| 9 | DEN | L |
| The Broncos have a tough time taking down the Panthers. | ||
| 10 | at NO | W |
| Carolina travels to New Orleans and beats the Saints. | ||
| 11 | BAL | L |
| Baltimore has an easy time taking down Carolina. | ||
| 12 | at TB | L |
| Tampa takes down Carolina, and the Panthers fall to 5-6. | ||
| 13 | at MIN | L |
| Brian Flores’ defense beats up on the powerless Panthers. | ||
| 14 | NO | L |
| The Saints get their revenge. | ||
| 15 | CIN | L |
| That’s five straight losses for Carolina. | ||
| 16 | at PIT | L |
| The Steelers handle Carolina at home. | ||
| 17 | SEA | L |
| Seven straight losses for the Panthers after starting 5-4. | ||
| 18 | ATL | W |
| It’s a meaningless win, but at least it’s a win to close the season. | ||
New Orleans Saints
2025 record: 6-11 Win over/under: 7.5
| Week | Opponent | Result |
| 1 | at DET | L |
| Year 2 of Tyler Shough starts slowly. | ||
| 2 | at BAL | L |
| That’s 0-2 for the Saints, but it’s two tough matchups on the road. | ||
| 3 | LV | W |
| Shough gets his first win of the season against the hapless Raiders. | ||
| 4 | ATL | W |
| Back to .500 with a home win over the Falcons. | ||
| 5 | MIN | L |
| Kyler Murray takes down the Saints. | ||
| 6 | at NYG | L |
| The Saints got their first win of 2025 over the Giants, but they lose this time. | ||
| 7 | PIT (France) | W |
| At least we can trust the French to more or less pronounce “Etienne” correctly, right? | ||
| 8 | BYE | |
| 9 | CLE | W |
| Once again, the Saints are back to .500. | ||
| 10 | CAR | L |
| New Orleans takes down Carolina in a home game. | ||
| 11 | at CHI | L |
| Through Week 11, the Saints will be alternating two-game winning and losing streaks. | ||
| 12 | at CIN | W |
| Loser of this game has to give up “Who Dey” or “Who Dat” for life. | ||
| 13 | GB | L |
| The Packers beat the Saints to end the two-game trend. | ||
| 14 | at CAR | W |
| It’s revenge on the Panthers. | ||
| 15 | at TB | L |
| It’s clearly the Bucs or the Saints for NFC South supremacy at this point, and the Bucs take the early lead. | ||
| 16 | ARI | L |
| The Cardinals surprise the Saints to put their backs against the wall. | ||
| 17 | at ATL | W |
| The Saints get the 2026 sweep over Atlanta. | ||
| 18 | TB | W |
| New Orleans beats Tampa to finish off the season. | ||
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2025 record: 8-9 Win over/under: 8.5
| Week | Opponent | Result |
| 1 | at CIN | L |
| Tampa starts with a loss against a strong Cincinnati offense. | ||
| 2 | CLE | W |
| Facing the Browns is a good way to get your first win of the season. | ||
| 3 | MIN | L |
| Tampa hosts the Vikings, and they don’t enjoy it. | ||
| 4 | GB | W |
| The two bays faced off a bunch in the early 2020s, but this is their first time since 2023. | ||
| 5 | at DAL | W |
| Back-to-back wins over the Packers and Cowboys gets the Bucs excited. | ||
| 6 | PIT | L |
| The Steelers kill the good vibes in Tampa. | ||
| 7 | at CAR | L |
| That’s two straight losses, and this one against a division foe. | ||
| 8 | ATL | L |
| The Falcons have taken three of their last four against the Bucs. Make it four of five | ||
| 9 | at CHI | L |
| A trip to Chicago yields the Bucs’ fourth straight loss. | ||
| 10 | BYE | |
| 11 | at DET | W |
| Off a rest, Tampa takes down the Lions. | ||
| 12 | CAR | W |
| Revenge on the Panthers. | ||
| 13 | LAC | L |
| Tampa hosts the Chargers, but Los Angeles comes out on top. | ||
| 14 | at BAL | L |
| The Ravens have an easy time against Tampa. | ||
| 15 | NO | W |
| The Bucs take the edge in the NFC South race. | ||
| 16 | at ATL | W |
| Tampa needs a win, and they get it. | ||
| 17 | LAR | W |
| Here’s the clutch move. It’s a must-win victory over an elite team. | ||
| 18 | at NO | L |
| Another 8-9 finish for the Bucs. | ||
Final Standings
- New Orleans Saints, 8-9
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 8-9
- Carolina Panthers, 6-11
- Atlanta Falcons, 6-11
The Saints win the division (another sub-.500 NFC South winner) based on tiebreaker. The division is still pretty terrible overall, and the Saints take advantage. Meanwhile, the Falcons’ QB situation dooms them, and the Panthers start looking for their next QB of the future as well.