By: JJ Lanier

Allow me to be the 1,768,348th person to say the quarterback position is the most important position on the football field. It’s certainly not a new thought, but it’s the truth.

If you’re a fan of the NFC South then you’re in luck, because from top to bottom, it has the strongest quarterback play of any division in football.

You have the reigning MVP in Cam Newton. A future Hall of Famer with Drew Brees. Jameis Winston has an incredibly bright future. And Matt Ryan is not only one of the better second tier quarterbacks around, but he has a nickname made for a beer endorsement.

(Seriously, how has “Matty Ice” not become the spokesperson for Natural Ice? Who cares if it tastes like a mixture of urine and tree bark, this needs to happen. The fact it hasn’t means somebody, somewhere, needs to lose their job.)

Newton is arguably the best of those four right now, but if you’re thinking solely about just making the playoffs, he’s probably the least necessary to his team. The Panthers have one of the league’s best defenses, and still should be this upcoming year, especially if there is even a modicum of truth in what Roddy White had to say about Josh Norman.

Combine that defense with Carolina’s running game and they would be a playoff quality team with backup Derek Anderson running the show. Of course, a playoff appearance isn’t the ultimate goal in Charlotte, and there won’t be a return to the Super Bowl without Cam.

Brees is pretty much all New Orleans has and he’s more or less the sole person keeping the Saints out of “Cleveland Brown bad” territory.

Their defense is atrocious and there are basically no weapons on the offensive side of the ball. Another season or two and Archie Manning will finally have someone that can relate to his playing days.

Winston still has ways to go to become an elite level quarterback, which has more to do with only having one year under his belt than his talent level, but he does have the talent and supporting cast to get him there.

Tampa is still probably a year or two away from being a legitimate playoff contender, but if Jameis’ game continues to grow and the organization can keep some key players around, they’ll be a tough out once they do make their return to the postseason.

As weird as it may sound, Ryan has more riding on his arm than the other three. Atlanta is not a Super Bowl contender like Carolina, but they are more prepared for a postseason appearance than the Saints or Bucs.

The defense has some work to do, but if Dan Quinn can have that group make the same strides they did last year, that side of the ball will be in decent shape.

Atlanta may have the best receiver in the game lining up for them in Julio Jones, but the rest of the offense is nothing to get excited about. I’m not sold at all on Devonta Freeman or any of their other wideouts.

The Falcons have a lot of untapped potential, but they need Ryan to be at the top of his game if they are even going to sniff the playoffs.

The NFC South could be one of the more competitive divisions and the quarterback play will have a lot to do with that. Maybe Matt Ryan will win MVP and have his own Natural Ice commercial?

For the love of all things holy, somebody make this happen!