Saints Trying To Stay Ahead Of Curve With Jordan Contract

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It was announced today that the New Orleans Saints signed Cameron Jordan to a $60 million dollar, 5-year extension that is guaranteed for $33.8 million which will keep the pass rusher in New Orleans until 2020.

The move by the Saints front office to secure Jordan now and not wait until the end of this season is a wise move on their part.

People are already weighing in on social media about the signing with some actually frowning a bit on throwing so much money at a player who had such a “down year”.

Granted that Jordan wasn’t setting the world on fire in 2014 but to be honest, neither was the rest of the Saints defense.

Dec 21, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan (94) shakes hands with head coach Sean Payton (R) prior to the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

As ProFootballFocus.com noted, Jordan was ranked at 28th for his position in 2014 but was ranked fourth in 2013.

Another sore spot for some is that outside linebacker Junior Galette just got paid a huge contract in 2014 which was a 4-year $41.5 million deal with $23 million guaranteed.

NOLA.com’s Larry Holder had an interesting take on the move by tweeting:

Every Saints fans remembers Grant as someone who never really was completely a monster but got paid like one in 2007 with a 7-year extension that was worth up to $63 million and included $20 million in guarantees.

After the contract Grant, who had been up and down already, experienced some of the worst seasons of his career and ended up on injured reserve in 2009 before being released the next year.

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It was visible that Grant was starting to wind down in his career due to injuries and the huge extension seemed like a huge mistake.

Galette, like Jordan, had a down year on defense and towards the end of the 2014 season was placed strictly in a situational role where he was brought in only on passing downs since he was a liability against the run.

Smith on the other hand, who signed a 6-year, $70 million dollar extension with the Saints in 2008, was comparable to Jordan in the sense of being a player who was seldom injured, was consistent, and even his “bad” years were better than other players in the league.

Aug 9, 2013; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints linebacker Will Smith (91) against the Kansas City Chiefs during a preseason game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The Saints defeated the Chiefs 17-13. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Jordan has not missed a game in his four year career with the Saints and is proving to be someone the defense rallies around like Smith and defensive coordinator Rob Ryan trusts.

To be realistic, the extension for Jordan probably should have happened sooner but now is better than waiting until he was free agent at the conclusion of this season.

While the gripe may be about his production, if the Saints were to gamble and Jordan had a Pro Bowl year like he did in 2013, they likely wouldn’t have been able to afford him.

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As any analyst will tell you, pass rushers are a premium and veteran ones are even more coveted so it’s feasible that if the Saints hadn’t locked him down then Jordan could have gone elsewhere for more money.

When head coach Sean Payton was asked about an extension for the versatile pass rusher during the offseason he mentioned it was a priority and that Jordan would be a key piece of their defense moving forward.

With the allegedly improved secondary the Saints are building this offseason, it should greatly benefit Jordan who seemed just a second shy of getting to the quarterback on several occasions in 2014.

Regardless, it was very wise to stay ahead of the curve and pay Jordan now to stay, instead of paying the piper for his loss later….

Next: 5 New Players Who Will Help the Saints Reach Super Bowl 50