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Come Fan with UsFriday, June 26, 2026

NFL Draft Grades: Bucs Lead The Way In NFC South (Video)

The NFC South is slowly becoming one of the best divisions in the NFL with all four teams -- Saints, Buccaneers, Falcons and Panthers -- legitimate playoff contenders. Each of those teams added talent over the weekend in the 2012 NFL Draft.

The Saints were on the bottom of the totem pole in this draft for the NFC South considering they didn't have a first or second round pick. The Bucs traded back and still picked up Mark Barron, the draft's top safety, and moved back into Round 1 to select Doug Martin. The Falcons didn't have a first round pick due to the Julio Jones trade last year, but they still picked up the draft's best center, Peter Konz, in Round 2. The Panthers found the draft's best inside linebacker with Luke Kuechly and the ninth pick.

Of the teams in the NFC South, the Bucs had the best draft. Adding Martin, arguably the draft's second best running back, was a good move to pair him with LeGarrette Blount.

Check out our StoryStream compiling 2012 NFL Draft grades, and be sure to check out our StoryStream breaking down every round of the draft. Visit SB Nation on YouTube for more NFL Draft grade videos.

Check out the SB Nation Channel on YouTube

2012 NFL Draft Grades and Analysis: NFC West Edition (via sbnation)

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