The New Orleans Saints walk out of their bye week retaining sole possession of first place in the NFC South. New Orleans shared their bye week with divisional foe and Week 12 opponent, the Atlanta Falcons. This was the last two remaining bye weeks in the division. From this point, the entire NFC South will play each week.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers lost their games as the Saints and Falcons sat at home. Tampa Bay fell to the San Francisco 49ers and the Panthers lost to the Dallas Cowboys. Neither loss is particularly surprising, and here is an outlook on the NFC South after Week 11:
New Orleans Saints (5-5)
Points differential: +16
Divisional record: 1-1
Conference record: 2-3
Upcoming games: Week 12 vs. Atlanta Falcons, Week 13 vs. Detroit Lions
Atlanta Falcons (4-6)
Points differential: -28
Divisional record: 2-0
Conference record: 3-4
Upcoming games: Week 12 at New Orleans Saints, Week 13 vs. New York Jets
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-6)
Points differential: -8
Divisional record: 1-1
Conference record: 4-3
Upcoming games: Week 12 at Indianapolis Colts, Week 13 vs. Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers (1-9)
Points differential: -122
Divisional record: 0-2
Conference record: 0-7
Upcoming games: Week 12 at Tennessee Titans, Week 13 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
