Few members of the New Orleans Saints are as invested in the team's rivalry with the Atlanta Falcons as Cameron Jordan. And that means no one took it harder when the Falcons ran wild on the Saints in prime time, outscoring them 45-24 with five touchdowns on the ground. Jordan doesn't have the game-breaking ability he used to bully Atlanta with this late in his career, but he's still a vocal team leader. And what he sees is a team that needs a message it currently isn't getting.
"It just can't get worse than that (expletive)," Jordan said hoarsely after the game. “It's just one of those games where we're gonna have to break this film down tomorrow, there is no off day. If you truly love this (expletive), you’ll be in there early in the morning.
There was a message. I doubt I'm sleeping much tonight. There's things we have to do.”
Saints coach Kellen Moore has been criticized for failing to prepare his team during the week and starting slow in games, and the numbers back it up. He's gone into halftime trailing behind in 17 of his 21 games. Whether or not it was his intent, it's easy to read Jordan's comments as a shot at a coaching staff that isn't putting in the work to lead a successful football team.
When asked what he needs to see on the sideline during a developing rout like Monday night -- what kind of message, what kind of expression, what kind of colorful language -- Jordan was pointed: “What is cussing gonna do for you? The message is, if you get punched in the chin, you tuck your chin and start swinging back. We didn’t start swinging back until late in the game.”
And that's another potential jab at Moore. Kicking a field goal when you only needed three yards to get a first down in scoring position, to make a 17-point deficit into a 14-point gap, was as weak a decision as you'll see in the NFL. Instead of punching back and trying to retake momentum, Moore played it safe and still lost. That's the kind of call that hurts team morale. With Pro Football Hall of Famers and team legends in attendance, and the whole nation watching after days of positive spin on Good Morning America and ESPN, the Saints blew it in front of their biggest rivals on what should have been a special occasion.
“Hopefully, hopefully the locker room understands that there is a division rivalry here. Because now we're 0-3 these last three games,” Jordan added. You'd hope the players in the locker room pick up on that emotion and try harder. It's obvious now that Moore hasn't felt it.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Cameron Jordan makes pointed remarks after embarrassing Falcons loss
