In an ongoing summer series, Pewter Report ranks each position group within the NFC South. In case you missed any of the previous positions here are links to each.

Quarterbacks

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

Offensive Tackles

Offensive Guards

Centers

Defensive Tackles

Edge

Linebackers

Cornerbacks

Nickelbacks

We now move to our last position on defense. It is one of the deepest positions within the division. I am going off of depth charts maintained by Ourlads.com. Now let’s get to the back end of the secondary with safety.

Safety

1. Tampa Bay Bucs

Antoine Winfield Jr.

Jordan Whitehead

Christian Izien

Kaevon Merriweather

When it comes to the safety position, the top of the NFC South starts with the Bucs and Antoine Winfield Jr. The young superstar is the quintessential definition of a “do-it-all” player. His calling card is his ability to play deep zone coverage. In doing so he has enabled the Bucs to remain a heavy single-high, cover-3 team in a league that has increasingly shifted to a two-high world.

Bucs Ss Jordan Whitehead and Antoine Winfield, Jr. – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

But beyond his deep coverage capabilities Winfield has proven himself to be a plus slot defender, a fantastic pass rusher and an elite run defender. Last year Winfield put it all together with one of the greatest seasons in modern history for a safety, contributing big plays on a routine basis. He had six sacks, six tackles for loss, six forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, 12 passes defensed and three interceptions. It was a season for the ages.

Next to Winfield Jr. the Bucs are bringing back a familiar face in Jordan Whitehead. Long considered one of the best box safeties in the NFL, since leaving the Bucs in 2022 Whitehead has proven a reliable deep two-high player with ball skills of his own. The two create a formidable pair that can vie for the top safety tandem in the NFL.

Christian Izien will most likely move from starting nickel, where he played last year, to backup free safety. He has solid athleticism and a high football IQ. That gives Tampa Bay a high floor for replacement level play should either Winfield or Whitehead has to leave the field. Kaevon Merriweather saw some extended action towards the end of 2023 and looked solid as a hard-hitting box safety in the same vein as Whitehead. He’s coming off a great preseason debut in Cincinnati, too.

2. Atlanta Falcons

Jessie Bates III

Richie Grant

DeMarcco Hellams

Micah Abernathy

Falcons FS Jessie Bates III – Photo by: USA Today

Jessie Bates III is one of two safeties in the NFL who has any argument to occupy the same stratosphere as Antoine Winfield Jr. Like his Bucs counterpart Bates is an elite deep safety with exceptional ball skills. This allows his defensive coordinator to be more creative in scheming in front of him. Bates is also a plus run defender, but where he is not as good as Winfield is as a pass rusher. With just 12 career pressures and no sacks it just isn’t a part of his game that gets utilized very much. Still, he is a brilliant backstop that quarterbacks must always account for.

Bates is paired with former second-round pick Richie Grant. Grant is a good box safety who leverages his quick burst to excel as a run defender as well as a pass rusher. He set career highs in quarterback pressures and sacks last year. But a lack of top-end speed creates somewhat of a ceiling for Grant and can make him vulnerable when he has to zone match against speedy receivers on deep seam and post routes.

DeMarcco Hellams played almost 400 snaps in his rookie campaign in 2023. He had an impressive coverage record, having been targeted just 12 times and allowing just 36 yards in 249 coverage snaps, though that came with no ball production. Hellams was a good run defender who missed less than 10% of his tackle attempts. He just suffered an ankle injury in camp and may be out to start the season. Free agent Justin Simmons is visiting the Falcons and could be signed to add depth. Micah Abernathy is an undrafted free agent from the 2019 draft class with just 25 defensive snaps in his career.

3. New Orleans Saints

Tyrann Mathieu

Jordan Howden

Johnathan Abram

J.T. Gray

Bucs TE Cade Otton and Saints S Tyrann Mathieu – Photo by: USA Today

If the Saints pull the trigger on signing free agent Justin Simmons, who the team recently hosted on a free agent visit, they will move up my rankings to second and possibly even challenge for the top spot in the NFC South. But for now, they are a very talented and respectable third place.

It starts with Tyrann Mathieu, who despite being on the wrong side of 30, has posted back-to-back quality campaigns with the Saints. Since arriving in New Orleans, Matthieu has allowed less than 500 yards over two seasons and 1,279 coverage snaps. He is still a quality chess piece who can move around the field and pose matchup problems for passing attacks, but he is more of a good than great run defender.

Jordan Howden started four of the Saints last six games of 2023 and had some solid success. The former Golden Gopher has positional flexibility having played both strong and free safety along with manning the slot in several games. He is still a bit of an unknown as a starter, which is what keeps the Saints just behind the Falcons in the NFC South safety rankings.

Johnathan Abram has never lived up to his first-round draft status. He is routinely picked on in coverage and has never been a strong run defender. He can fill in a pinch, but over extended looks he has been exposed as a liability. J.T. Gray is entering his sixth season with New Orleans, and despite being rarely called upon he has played relatively well over that time period.

4. Carolina Panthers

Xavier Woods

Jordan Fuller

Nick Scott

Jammie Robinson

Louisiana Tech S Xavier Woods – Photo courtesy of La Tech

The Panthers don’t have a bad safety room. It’s just the each of the other teams in the division has a superstar leading their groups while Carolina has a solid group without a true headliner. Xavier Woods is coming off of his best season as a pro under defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero. His 132 receiving yards allowed and 7.3 yards per catch allowed were both career bests for him. Like Atlanta’s Jessie Bates, Woods is a good top-down safety who can help in run support, but isn’t used as a pass rush weapon as Evero is not one to call many defensive back blitzes.

Jordan Fuller was a really smart signing by the Panthers. After starting his career off well with two quality seasons in 2020 and 2021, a hamstring injury forced him to miss most of 2022. Still, he had a great comeback in 2023 posting 94 tackles, eight passes defensed, three interceptions and three forced fumbles.

Given his strong run defense I would imagine the Panthers try to bring Fuller into the box more than the Rams did. Especially since Woods is a good deep safety in his own rights. Evero likes to run a lot of two-high looks as a disciple of Raheem Morris so look for both players to get plenty of opportunities to patrol deep.

Evero is familiar with Nick Scott, as the two worked together in Los Angeles with the Rams. He has proven to be a coverage liability in the past, but the Bengals were able to weaponize him as a blitzer last year in a small sample size. Jammie Robinson was a much-heralded prospect coming out of Florida State, but fell to the fifth round and played less than 65 snaps last year. His lack of athleticism keeps his ceiling low.