Buccaneers' costly Monday Night Football loss is great news for Kirk Cousins, Falcons

No doubt about it. Week 7 was a no good, very bad week for the entire NFC South. After seeing the New Orleans Saints get embarrassed at home Drew Brees night to his former head coach's team, the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers put forth pitiful efforts in their losses on Sunday. With a chance to make some headway within the division, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost on Monday Night Football.

Entering Week 8, Atlanta retains the top spot in the division after the Buccaneers stumbled to the Baltimore Ravens in one of the final two games of the week. It helps ease the pain of the brutal home loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Seeing the Denver Broncos and Washington Commanders have their way with the Saints and Panthers respectively means Atlanta had a great time to have a bad game.

Furthermore, Atlanta will be playing the Buccaneers with one extra day rest over their rivals. Yes, the game may be in Tampa and a must-win for the home team, even more so than for the Falcons. However, the Buccaneers are expected to be down their two best receivers. Chris Godwin looks to be lost for the year with an ankle injury. Mike Evans may not be ready in time with an injured hamstring.

Should Kirk Cousins and the rest of the Falcons handle business, they can run away with the division.

Atlanta Falcons could take advantage of down Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Not going to lie, Atlanta and Tampa Bay are coming off their worst played games defensively of the season. While Sunday was the Falcons' first multi-score loss of the season, Tampa Bay also lost by three scores to Denver earlier in the season. Maybe the Broncos are good? Like the Buccaneers, Falcons and Seahawks they are also 4-3 on the season. Too bad the Kansas City Chiefs never lose...

What I keep going back to after the results last week's collective disaster for the NFC South is the Falcons still came out on top. They are still 3-0 in the division with wins over all three of their rivals. They just suffered their first loss in about a month, and that came to a new division leader in Seattle, who was just riding a three-game losing streak. Seattle was simply more desperate than Atlanta was.

Furthermore, Atlanta enters Week 8 much healthier than their biggest competitor in the division. Carolina is already out of it, and the Saints can be crossed off in about a week or so with how poorly they are playing. If Cousins plays up to standard and Raheem Morris does not get the worst game imaginable for this two all-world safeties again, Atlanta might improve to 5-3 and 4-0 in the division.

After that, it is home date vs. a struggling Dallas Cowboys team, followed by a road date at the down on their luck Saints. Atlanta still has to play three other contending teams the rest of the way in Denver, Minnesota and Washington, but the second half of its schedule opens up quite nicely. It all starts with Morris' defense locking down on Baker Mayfield, as well as Cousins going to work Sunday.

If Cousins can pick apart Todd Bowles' defense again, the NFC South could be comfortably Atlanta's.