Exhausted and dejected after their Backlash loss to The Hardys, Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch sat in the locker room, staring their frustrated selves down in the mirror, wondering what went wrong. 

Fighting the WWE World Tag Team Champions tooth and nail in the blue-collar boys' longest match of their careers, they went through some intense self-reflection, deciding their roughneck, break-the-rules ring approach needed an attitude adjustment.

In an interview with WWE.com, Cade and Murdoch vividly remembered their turning point.

"We had seen the light after Backlash," Trevor said.  "[The match against The Hardys] was a totally different kind of match for us. … It was us, giving our all, and coming up short," he explained.

"There's nothing wrong with coming up short and going back to the locker room, looking yourself in the mirror and saying, ‘I did my best and I lost.'  Backlash just wasn't our night." 

"We went out there and gave 110 percent to Matt and Jeff Hardy, and bottom line, they came out victorious," Cade added. "We gave them our best shot, and they still won. You can't have nothing but respect for somebody like that. We have the utmost respect for Matt and Jeff Hardy." 

The duo then decided on a career-changing, perhaps life-changing, plan of action. They decided that they would set their rule-breaking ways aside and be a shining example of sportsmanship to the WWE locker room. 

Simply put, Cade and Murdoch would go from "mean" to "clean." And the duo didn't have to look far for inspiration for their new direction -- they looked to the World Tag Team Champions as their pillar.

"If [sportsmanship] worked for Matt and Jeff Hardy, why can't it work for Cade and Murdoch," Cade asked rhetorically. "We still believe and know that we're the best tag team in this company. One of the reasons we're the best is because Cade and Murdoch are not afraid to sit back, look at themselves, and see what went wrong. And that's what we've done."

Looking back at the past month, the pair's actions have demonstrated their commitment to their new cause: obeying WWE referees, following the rules to the letter and shaking the hands of their opponents after every well-fought match -- even if those opponents, including The Hardys, publicly show doubt about Cade and Murdoch's change of heart.

"I don't think that it's right that the fans and certain wrestlers don't believe in our sincerity," Murdoch griped. "Hey, people change." 

"We understand that they're a little bit confused by our actions. Heck, we're a little confused by our actions," Cade explained. "But it's what makes us happy and makes us feel good.  We're going out there to try to prove to everybody … that actions speak louder than words."

"I understand that because of some of our previous actions that some people may say ‘That's not the real Cade and Murdoch.' Actions are going to speak louder than words, it's true," Murdoch concurred. 

"We don't have any intentions on doing anything that someone might think we're going to do. We just saw something different … You have to be us to know what we felt [inside]."

The blue-collar boys have been good to their word so far. Their Judgment Day title match against The Hardys came up frustratingly short, but it hasn't changed their mindset one bit. 

They even went a step above the call of duty on Monday Night Raw, saving The Hardys from a post-match beating at the hands of The World's Greatest Tag Team, Johnny Nitro and Kenny Dykstra. 

Despite recent losses to The Hardys in the ring, Cade believes as long as their actions and intentions are golden, then championship gold will find its way to the team's waists. 

"What we've done up to this point hasn't worked for us. We haven't gotten where we want to," Cade said. "So, what we've decided is to let our hearts take over, and go out there and do what we love and do what we do best, and that's fight," he continued.

"Y'all just keep watching the program and every Monday night, Cade and Murdoch will prove to you and everybody else that we are sportsmen."

They might soon prove to the WWE locker room and fans that "right" results in rewards, such as the World Tag Team Championship.

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