Ex-Cal Star Cameron Jordan Has Big Game in Saints' Win; Keenan Allen Injured
Defensive end Cameron Jordan and wide receiver Keenan Allen were teammates at Cal in 2010, but they were adversaries in Monday night's NFL game, which was won by Jordan's New Orleans Saints over Allen's Los Angeles Chargers 30-27 in overtime.
Jordan ended up being the more productive of the two former Golden Bears players on Monday, although Allen initially seemed headed for a big game. Allen had an impressive touchdown catch in the first quarter, but he watched most of the rest of the game from the sidelines as the result of a back injury sustained in the second quarter.
Allen finished with just two receptions for 29 yards and one touchdown on just two targets. He began the weekend third in the NFL in receptions with 32, but now with 34, he is tied for fifth.
Allen's touchdown reception on this video was the first score of the game:
Allen's touchdown came with Jordan chasing Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert toward the right sideline before Herbert found Allen in the end zone.
And Allen punctuated the touchdown catch with this big-time spike:
However, that was Allen's last hurrah for the evening as he suffered a back injury in the second quarter that sidelined him for the rest of the game:
The Chargers have a bye next weekend so Allen has two weeks to try to recover in time for their Oct. 25 game against Jacksonville.
Instead it was Jordan who came up big.
A five-time Pro Bowler, Jordan had substandard statistics over the first four games, when he collected just 17 tackles, including one sack and two tackles for loss. He had not had more than five tackles in any of those four games.
But on Monday, he registered 10 tackles, including five solo hits, a half sack and two tackles for loss.
It was Jordan's second-highest tackle total of his 10-year NFL career, and the most since he recorded a career-high 11 tackles in the opener of the 2012 season, Jordan's second year in the NFL.
.Cam Jordan (94) is part of a sack celebration:
Jordan came out of it with a win when Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams was stopped a yard short of a first down on a fourth-down play in overtime after the Saints had kicked a go-ahead field goal.
You have to wonder whether Allen might have been the reciever on that kind of play if he had been in there.
Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53
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