For a division that was alleged to be the redheaded stepchild of the NFL at the outset of the 2002 season, with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers expected to frolic through the competition, the NFC South proved more competitive than anyone anticipated last season. The division posted more cumulative victories (37) than any other in the league and had an aggregate 25-14-1 mark versus outside opponents. It sent two teams to the playoffs, was one of just two divisions to feature three franchises with at least nine wins each, and produced the Super Bowl champion.

And, be forewarned: Things could be even tougher in 2003.

This is a division of burgeoning rivalries, with a quarter more leavened than any of the pundits could have envisioned. The Bucs defeated Atlanta on two occasions and humbled quarterback Michael Vick both times. On the other hand, Tampa Bay struggled against New Orleans, unable to beat the Saints in either of two meetings. Those were the same Saints, though, who couldn't solve the Vick puzzle. As for the Carolina Panthers, well, they finished the campaign winning four of their last five games, compliments in large part to a defense that skyrocketed from No. 31 in 2001 to second in 2002.

Even if it loses a few veteran free agents this spring, Tampa Bay will go into 2003 among the Super Bowl favorites, and the early money choice again in the NFC South. But earning a second Super Bowl championship could be a difficult task in an improving division.

Here's a look at each NFC South team (in order of finish in 2002):

	Head coach Jon Gruden
	2002 record 12-4
	2002 finish Super Bowl champion

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Overview: What a difference a coach makes. That seemed to be the case for the Bucs in 2002 as their gamble on luring Gruden from Oakland, a move that cost the underachieving franchise four high-round draft choices and also $8 million in cash, turned out to be a winner. Gruden provided the passion that previous Tampa Bay teams lacked and, despite the usual offensive slumps that always seem to impact the Bucs, stewarded the team to its first Super Bowl title.

Defending the championship, keeping open the window of opportunity for a team that is older than most observers realize, will be a real test for Gruden and his staff. Free agency, the salary cap, and players seeking to cash in on the championship season threaten every Super Bowl champion anymore, and Tampa Bay will be no different. But the Bucs were able to keep crafty defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin on-hand with a record three-year contract; will likely retain most of their key free agents; and now have an offensive direction upon which to build.

While their top-rated defense is still the Bucs' primary calling card, quarterback Brad Johnson showed in the playoffs that he can take his game to a higher level. The aim for Gruden in 2003 is to continue building on the progress the offense exhibited in the stretch run and particularly in the postseason.

Biggest Needs: Even with the improvement of the offensive line over the final month of the season, Tampa Bay still needs to rebuild its blocking unit. The coaches feel left tackle Roman Oben progressed nicely and want to re-sign him before free agency begins. But the consensus is that the interior trio is too soft. Look for the Bucs to ardently pursue Jets guard Randy Thomas, a former pupil of line coach Bill Muir, if he is in the unrestricted free-agency market. Gruden must also figure out what to do at tailback, where, despite his 124-yard Super Bowl effort, Michael Pittman was one of the league's biggest disappointments last season. Tampa Bay is one of the few teams to win a Super Bowl with a tailback-by-committee approach, but the merry-go-round tactic won't work twice.

Biggest Decisions: There are three pending free agents on defense -- free safety and Super Bowl most valuable player Dexter Jackson, along with linebackers Shelton Quarles and Alshermond Singleton -- and the Bucs have to decide the market value of each. All three players are terrific in the Kiffin scheme, probably wouldn't be as productive elsewhere, but may get inflated offers from other clubs. The Super Bowl certainly made Jackson a hot commodity, and will make him rich, but the Bucs shouldn't overpay for a guy who benefited from the system and played with great veterans.

Cap Room: At roughly $2 million-$3 million over the '03 cap, the Bucs are hardly in dire straits. But since they don't have a first-round choice again, and might have to fill some holes through free agency, creating available funds is a must. Ronde Barber and Martin Gramatica have restructured their contracts already, and look for Brad Johnson ($5.8 million), Derrick Brooks ($6.88 million), Keyshawn Johnson ($6.86 million) and Simeon Rice ($7.1 million) to be asked to do the same.

	Head coach Dan Reeves
	2002 record 9-7
	2002 finish Lost in NFC divisional round

Atlanta Falcons
Overview: Under the stewardship of owner Arthur Blank and on-field leadership of second-year quarterback Michael Vick, the franchise was re-energized, and the Falcons posted their best season since the magical 1998 campaign when Reeves somehow nudged the club to a Super Bowl XXXIII appearance. So, after a surprising 9-7 season in 2002, what to do for an encore?

It is now chic to consider Atlanta an emerging contender, one capable of vying for a playoff berth on an annual basis, and that might be the case. But this is also a franchise that, in one of the great "stat of the weak" entries, has never had consecutive winning seasons. Vick should be able to expunge that gruesome historical footnote, but he needs improved mechanics and more weapons around him, and has to realize at some point he can't make every play for the Falcons. Both he and the offense in general sputtered down the stretch and, frankly, for all the attention they received, the Falcons backed into their first playoff berth in four seasons.

In the two meetings against Tampa Bay, the Falcons and Vick were overmatched, and the young quarterback has vowed to be more competitive against the Bucs in 2003. Don't bet against the Bucs and Falcons meeting in the first Monday night game of the season.

Biggest Needs: Receivers, receivers and, uh, more receivers. If Vick is to make another quantum leap forward, he desperately needs a deep threat, and Atlanta is expected to spend whatever it takes to lure Buffalo Bills pending free agent Peerless Price to the Georgia Dome. The selling points are easy: Play indoors and line up with the league's most exciting athlete. In addition to buying a free-agent receiver, Atlanta will likely expend a high draft pick on one and hope that one of their incumbent youngsters, Quentin McCord or Trevor Gaylor, emerges as a playmaker. With cornerback Ray Buchanan a step slower, there is some talk of him moving inside to free safety, but that won't happen unless the Falcons find a cover man to replace him outside.

Biggest Decisions: Just where to play Buchanan in a secondary that gave up too many big passes in '02 is one quandary that needs to be addressed. Another offseason priority is to figure a way to get optimum production from the tailback tandem of Warrick Dunn and T.J. Duckett. The team's surprising first-round pick in 2002, Duckett was often injured as a rookie, but is the kind of power back that Reeves prefers. If he is healthy this year, he needs to be on the field, because the guy can be a workhorse.

Cap Room: The Falcons are about $7 million under the spending limit, but need to reach an agreement with pending free agent Keith Brooking. If the two sides don't reach a long-term deal by Feb. 20, the Falcons will use the "franchise" designation on their star middle linebacker. Look for defensive tackle Shane Dronett ($4.7 million) to be cut. Corner Ashley Ambrose has a very high cap value ($6.12 million), as does perennially injured defensive end Travis Hall ($5.387 million), and both may be asked to restructure.

	Head coach Jim Haslett
	2002 record 9-7
	2002 finish 3rd in NFC South

New Orleans Saints
Overview: Owner Tom Benson might want to petition the league to simply do away with the December portion of the schedule every year. For a second straight season, the Saints were sinners in the final month, inexplicably collapsing and costing themselves a playoff berth. This time, they saved the worst for last, losing at home to Carolina on the final Sunday, as the Falcons tried to hand them a wild-card berth by losing at Cleveland.

With the playoffs on the line, New Orleans couldn't even get into the end zone against the Panthers, and the pratfall culminated an ugly plummet from a 6-1 record to a final mark of 9-7. The season-ending three-game losing skein came against clubs that totaled just a dozen victories outside of their wins over the Saints. A similar meltdown in '03 and Jim Haslett, who is 2-7 in the post-November games over the last two seasons, will have trouble finishing off the contract extension he received last year.

Although he isn't solely responsible for the collapse, quarterback Aaron Brooks, another guy who got a fat extension, was an invisible man in the crunch part of the schedule. Brooks and Saints officials kept insisting the quarterback wasn't playing hurt. Guess that's why he had shoulder surgery right after the season ended, huh? He'd better bounce back, because there's not much behind him.

Biggest Needs: While the offense sputtered down the stretch, going from an average of 32.2 points in the first month to just 50 points total in the final three outings, defense was a problem area throughout the campaign. And the unit, which statistically rated 27th in the league, has to be fixed before the Saints can legitimately compete in a division that only figures to be even tougher in 2003. Mammoth tackle Norman Hand didn't play well at all, the Saints couldn't stop the run as a result, and the veteran might not be back this year. Middle linebacker Charlie Clemons, who had 13½ sacks in '01, dropped to just a half-sack last season, and might also be replaced. But in the big picture, the area of biggest concern is the secondary, where not even the midseason return of troubled cornerback Dale Carter was enough to stop the hemorrhaging.

Biggest Decision: Although they aren't dangling left offensive tackle Kyle Turley to other teams, the Saints will listen to trade offers if someone calls about him, and any offensive line reshuffling could undo the progress made in 2002. Offensively, the Saints have to decide just what they are, the three-wideout team that exploded early in the year, or the too-close-to-the-vest bunch that tried too hard to protect injured tailback Deuce McAllister in some late-season outings. They also need to spend wisely on veterans who can help a defense that surrendered 20 or more points in 15 of 16 games.

Salary Cap: General manager Mickey Loomis has done a terrific job of keeping things under control, and the Saints are currently about $14 million under the 2003 cap limit. There isn't a lot of fat on the cap, with Hand the only player possessing a cap value above $5 million. Look for oft-injured guard Wally Williams ($4.624) million to be restructured or be released.

	Head coach John Fox
	2002 record 7-9
	2002 finish 4th in NFC South

Carolina Panthers
Overview: In the debut season of head coach John Fox, the Panthers started strong and finished even stronger, but were undone by the middle portion of the schedule in which they re-created their nasty 2001 habit of inventing ways to lose. The result was an eight-game skid that featured some disappointments. The overall 7-9 record, though, was testimony to the fine job done by both Fox and general manager Marty Hurney in their first year together. It augurs well for the future in some ways but, truth be told, Carolina is probably still a couple seasons removed from viable playoff contention.

The defense was excellent, going from No. 30 in 2001 to second overall in '02, but the loss of coordinator Jack Del Rio, who became head coach in Jacksonville, could be a difficult one to overcome. That said, the Panthers have assembled a very good front-four unit, and a stop unit in general that hustles to the ball. Alas, there was no such progress on offense, and Carolina has to come up with a quarterback for the future, an every-down tailback, and receivers who can stretch the field. It's not likely the Offense Fairy is going to visit Fox that often during the offseason. Still, this is not a team that can be taken too lightly, and the task now for Fox is to assure there is no slippage.

Biggest needs: C'mon, folks, does anyone really believe that stopgap quarterback Rodney Peete, who turns 37 next month, is the answer at the game's most critical position? Heck, even the Panthers brass doesn't feel that way, although re-signing the pending free agent is a priority, since there isn't anyone better than him currently on the roster. Fox seemed to decide last year that former starter Chris Weinke wasn't the guy for the future, so the Panthers need to land someone in free agency or the draft. They also need to replace hard-running tailback Lamar Smith, a blue-collar guy, but one whose offseason problems late in the year mean he won't be invited back for 2003. DeShaun Foster, the former UCLA star who tore up his knee in camp and subsequently underwent controversial microfracture surgery, might be back by July. But the Panthers can't afford to wait on him and have to get a quality runner.

Biggest decision: Given the play of youngsters like Julius Peppers, Kris Jenkins and Mike Rucker on the defensive line, the Panthers don't need an underachiever like tackle Sean Gilbert around anymore. He needs to be cut, not just because of his uninspired play, but also because of a ridiculous cap number ($9.76 million). Other veterans, like tight end Wesley Walls, will also be assessed with a more jaundiced eye during the offseason. In the end, though, the biggest decision is what to do at quarterback.

Salary Cap: For too many years, owner Jerry Richardson went for the quick fix, and, thus, cap management was bungled. Richardson has pulled in the reins in the past two years, and the Panthers are in an unusual position for them, at $7 million-$8 million below the spending limit. That should allow at least a couple modest acquisitions. In addition to Gilbert, wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad, injured way too often, might have to restructure ($5.9 million), as might left offensive tackle Todd Steussie ($5.04 million).

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.