According to Cam Jordan, Bucs are ‘fighting for second place’

The Buccaneers were immediately catapulted to one of the favorites to be a superior team in 2020 after the acquisition of quarterback Tom Brady. Add veteran tight end Rob Gronkowski and Tampa Bay’s odds went even higher. With the defense that’s return following a successful end to 2019 and the weapons already established on offense, you can understand why people are hyped about what Bruce Arians and Jason Licht have built together.

But not everyone is a fan.

Speaking on Good Morning Football on NFL Network, New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan tried to give praise to the Bucs but couldn’t resist burying them in the process.

“But I do know we have to step up our game, we’ve got to elevate. They’ve got the second-greatest quarterback of all-time, right behind Drew Brees, and now we’ve got a head-to-head two times a year. We’ve got our work cut out for us and then they have an addition, you bring in Rob Gronkowski and LeSean McCoy, you already had two 1,000-yard receivers in (Chris) Godwin and Mike Evans. This is a team that’s fighting for second place.”

The Saints have in fact been tops in the division the last three seasons and the Buccaneers have undoubtedly struggled on the field. So it’s fair to agree with Jordan to some level.

However, despite all that, both teams have played each other to seven one-score games out of 10 matchups the last five seasons. The Bucs are 3-4 in those seven games decided by a score where they had a quarterback that was prone to turn the ball over most of those games. The quarterback that is now under center wearing a pewter helmet is not the same guy, as Jordan is well aware.

We’ll see exactly how different these games play out in just five weeks. Week 1 can’t come fast enough.