Cameron Jordan knows he's approaching the twilight of his career, but he's not thinking about retirement right now.
He's thinking Lombardi.
"Nobody has ever walked into a season (and) been like, 'Ooh, I hope we win 10 games,'" Jordan said on Monday during an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio. "No, I'm trying to win each and every game that we play. My expectation is being 21-0, 22-0, whatever it takes to get to a Super Bowl. I want to beat each and every team we line across.
"Every tackle, who I'm never gonna know their names, but like every dud that's out there, we're trying to beat the breaks off of them. I'm trying to get to each and every quarterback. The reality is, we have potential. The mentality is, we want to as a defense take over each and every game. And there's no allowance to be like, 'Hey, I think we could be a 12-5 team.' I think we can win each and every one of these things."
Jordan has reason to be encouraged. The Saints boast an excellent secondary, return veteran pillar Demario Davis at linebacker, and have a new, experienced quarterback on the roster who is expected to help them win plenty of games. After two years of wading in the abyss of a post-Drew Brees world, the Saints no longer have to grind out games, thanks to the arrival of Derek Carr.
Jordan has high hopes -- the highest possible -- for Carr and the Saints.
"I expect a Super Bowl," Jordan said. "I expect to take Derek Carr, DC4, back to Vegas where he just left and have a return run at the Super Bowl."
The going won't be easy, but thanks to Tom Brady's retirement, the NFC South is wide open. The division doesn't feature a runaway favorite, and if there is one at all, it's likely in New Orleans.
It's easier said than done, of course, but for the first time since Brees retired, Jordan has legitimate reason to be excited. Now comes the time to put in the work toward achieving his lofty goal.
