METAIRIE, La. — New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Brandon Staley walked into the team’s facility early one morning this spring to an unusual sight.
Defensive end Cameron Jordan was running laps around the outdoor field by himself.
“I can see him … in a workout in our facility and he’s out there running laps as a D-lineman,” Staley said. “I mean he’s running extra, in sweats, in the Metairie heat, the Louisiana heat and he’s always doing extra.”
Doing extra is a requirement for both Jordan and linebacker Demario Davis, both of whom turned 36 this year and are the most tenured defensive players on the roster. Getting through a 17-game season takes a high level of effort and a commitment that hasn’t wavered in their respective 15th and 14th seasons.
“I think I heard very early on ‘Do what you love and love what you do,’ and I think when you have something that you enjoy doing and it’s a passion for you, you don’t have to have an alarm clock to remind you to be there,” Davis said. “So, you’re constantly working. There’s a drive and ambition to attain something or achieve something and you just lock in your goal. Whatever it takes.”
That drive has served them well so far. Together, they have missed only two total games out of a possible 446 because of injury — Davis with a hamstring injury for one game last year and Jordan one game in 2022 because of an orbital fracture. During Sunday’s 44-13 loss at the Seattle Seahawks, Jordan moved past quarterback Drew Brees for the most regular-season games (229) played as a Saint.
“They’re just so wired to their routine, and I think that you see it by how they play and their durability,” Staley said. “And I think it’s a great example for our whole team because they see that, they see why these guys have been able to play so long, not just their God-given engineering, it’s what they’re putting into the game. And I do think that they sacrifice so that they can play.”
Jordan returned for a 15th season despite taking a pay reduction that restructured his previous contract into one based heavily on production. He’ll earn up to $4 million for defensive playing time and sacks (five sacks earn him $300,000 and each additional sack up to nine earns him another $100,000).
On his podcast, “Off the Edge with Cam Jordan,” he said he initially resisted the idea of a pay cut, but once he calmed down, he realized both that he did not want to leave New Orleans and that his priority was winning.
But Sunday’s game was also a stark reminder that time is running out for either player to win a Super Bowl with both in the final seasons of their contracts and the team facing an uphill battle after starting 0-3. Alongside a 34-0 loss to the Green Bay Packers last year, it could be considered one of the worst overall team performances in many years, and a somber Jordan was asked if it hurt worse now without many years left in the tank.
“Each down, each game, I’ve always played like it’s going to be my last, so my mentality has never been able to shift because that’s how I’ve always played. If today ended and I had to walk away from football, where would I be? I’d know that I gave everything my all, so Year 1 to Year 15, same mentality,” he said. “Each one of these hurts the most because it’s the most glaring right now.”
Things won’t get easier on Sunday, as the Saints are 16.5-point underdogs against the Buffalo Bills (1 p.m. ET, CBS), according to ESPN Bet. Those odds are the most since they were a 16-point underdog against the San Francisco 49ers in 1985 (the Saints won that game 20-17 but finished the season 5-11).
“We’re not where we want to be. We’re not in the situation we anticipated, we’re 0-3 … but I think our guys are working the right way. They understand it’s all about how you respond to these situations,” Saints coach Kellen Moore said. “There’s too many examples in our league of people having setbacks like this and being able to respond the right way, so we got to be one of those teams that does it.”
Jordan and Davis are all too familiar with these challenges, and will lean on their experiences to rise above them. When Davis was with the 2016 Cleveland Browns, it took the team 16 weeks to win one game. Jordan was part of a 2012 Saints defense that gave up 7,042 yards in 16 games, which remains the most in NFL history.
Last year Jordan was asked to move inside at times and had his role reduced to 10 snaps in a 23-22 Week 9 loss to the Carolina Panthers. Jordan was so frustrated that he was caught on video walking off by himself after the game.
Saints coach Dennis Allen was fired the next day and defensive line coach Todd Grantham moved to another role under interim coach Darren Rizzi. Jordan, who got his snaps bumped up immediately afterward later revealed on former teammate Terron Armstead’s podcast that “I walked off into this tunnel, and I made a phone call, and then the next day we released probably the worst D-line coach I ever had.”
Those experiences have given both Davis and Jordan unique perspectives to face what could be their final and most difficult challenge as professionals. If the Saints lose to the Bills and fall to 0-4, history would be against them. All nine teams that began the season 0-4 since the playoff expansion to 14 teams in 2020 have missed the postseason.
Jordan and Davis won’t be alone in changing the outcome of Sunday’s Week 4 game from their respective positions. The Saints are struggling in multiple areas, and are tied with the Tennessee Titans for a league-worst 41 accepted penalties. They are averaging only 15.7 points per game on offense (ranked 29th in the league) and allowing 30 points per game on defense (25th).
But their leadership will be needed more than ever.
Jordan was asked after the Seahawks’ loss if the leaders of the team would start as early as the plane ride home in addressing the issues, like giving up big plays and struggling to get off the field on third down
“Have you ever known Double D to be quiet? I don’t know if you know who I am, so, yeah,” Jordan said, referring to himself and his penchant to be a vocal leader.
Jordan, who has long tried to find something positive to say after both wins and losses, said he felt like it’s still early enough to correct things and hopefully push for the Saints to return to the playoffs for the first time since the 2020 divisional loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“There’s so much time right now to be like, ‘Hey, it may look like it, but this is imperative now. This is what we have to be able to turn towards,” Jordan said. “That starts with me talking to D-line, Double D talking to linebackers and [Justin] Reid talking to safeties, to DBs. If we have to address everybody, great. It’s all right. Our DBs and our linebackers and our D-line have been able to have an open line of communication since training camp. If they got something to say, it’s always [an] open door.”
