Malcolm Jenkins: 'Bittersweet' Facing Saints For First Time
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Malcolm Jenkins will always hold a special place in his football soul for the New Orleans Saints. It's the team that picked him in the first round out of Ohio State in 2009. It's the team he won a Super Bowl with in his rookie year. It's a team he still maintains friendships with a number of former Saints' teammates, like Marques Colston, Jahri Evans and Mark Ingram.
But when the Saints visit Lincoln Financial Field this Sunday at 1 p.m. will be a little different for Jenkins, one of the Eagle leaders who's been a bright spot in their disappointing 1-3 start playing against his former teammates for the first time since becoming an Eagle in 2014.
"I played with them for five years and there are a lot of guys I made life-long friendships with, and I have a lot of respect for the guys on the coaching staff there and obviously Drew (Brees)," Jenkins said. "It was real bitter for me to leave there, especially in the fashion in which I left. Philadelphia has been like a second home to me, but I have to admit, it will be bittersweet facing those guys for the first time. I still root for them. I still want to see them do well, except obviously, when they play against us.
"It will be nice to see a lot of the guys I haven't seen in a while. On the other hand, I'm really looking forward for the opportunity to compete against them. It's one of those things where it isn't necessarily revenge, but I guess I want to play well against them. It's one of those things where I know they type of guys that they are, and they know me. I never got a chance to play against Drew Brees, or Marques Colston. They're the best and you always want to play against the best. Those are also guys I spend time with in the off-season. So it will be a lot of fun."