Falcons DE Takk McKinley is out of the playoffs, not out of tweets trolling the Saints

NFC South trash talk is the best NFL trash talk. And despite the NFC’s deepest division being eliminated from the playoffs in heartbreaking fashion this past weekend, the talk is alive and well.

Shortly after Stefon Diggs and the Minnesota Vikings stunned the New Orleans Saints on Sunday night – and around 24 hours after the Atlanta Falcons lost to the Philadelphia Eagles – Falcons defensive end Takk McKinley took to Twitter to gloat about the Saints’ ouster.

The rivalry got both heated and petty toward the end of the 2017 season. There has been no shortage of 28-3 references. Saints coach Sean Payton even directed a “choke” sign at Falcons running back Devonta Freeman. After that game, which Atlanta won, Freeman tweeted: “AINTS lol.”

The picture of Payton making the gesture also came in handy on Sunday:

The Falcons’ loss in Philly likely tuned down the pleasure their players and fans took from the Saints’ collapse. But it certainly didn’t mute it entirely. Fans had fun at New Orleans’ expense, too:

And it wasn’t just Atlanta that got in on the fun. The City of Charlotte – whose Panthers lost to the Saints last round – needing nothing more than an emoji to join the schadenfreude party:

The only disappointing part of this three-way beef is that none of the three teams will be playing any more football until next fall. But that doesn’t mean the trash talking will go silent until then.