Baker Mayfield, Bucs fire back at Saints player over rivalry dispute
If Saints DE Cameron Jordan wasn't worried about the Buccaneers before, he is now.
Leading up to Sunday's game between the NFC South opponents, Jordan downplayed Tampa Bay's competitiveness and expected an easy checkmark on the schedule.
"Is there a rivalry with the Bucs I don't know about?" the longtime Saint told reporters Thursday. "Our only real rivalry is with [Atlanta] and that's not really a rivalry."
Things didn't go as planned for Jordan, as the Bucs (3-1) dominated the Saints (2-2) 26-9 in New Orleans and took control of the division. The Bucs have now defeated the Saints in three consecutive matchups — and kept their receipts.
"It's a passionate rivalry, whether they want to admit it or not," Tampa Bay QB Baker Mayfield said after the win. When asked how much he trash-talked during the blowout, he "plead the fifth."
Mayfield impressed in his first NFC South showdown, completing 25 of 32 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns with an interception. The former first-overall pick has been the best QB in the division thus far, leading his rivals in passing yards, touchdowns, QB rating and, most importantly, wins.
Bucs OT Tristan Wirfs also jabbed back at Jordan's diss following the game. The All-Pro tackle said he remembered Jordan jawing at him his rookie year, so it's only fair to give him a taste of his own medicine.
"I guess it's not much of a rivalry anymore, according to [Jordan,]" Wirfs said. "They're kind of gunning for us now. For them to downplay it? It's a division game. [There's] always going to be a lot behind it."
It's not the first time Jordan made faulty predictions on the Bucs this year. When Tom Brady retired in February, Jordan said that "Tampa Bay will probably go back to where Tampa Bay has been," alluding to the franchise's dry spell during the 2010s.
Well, that Brady-less team enters its bye week atop the division, while the Saints travel to New England following consecutive losses.
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