Sauce Gardner made his much-anticipated debut as the newest Colts starting cornerback after his blockbuster trade from the Jets earlier in the week. Facing the Falcons and top wide receiver Drake London in Berlin, it was a tough first assignment.
Indianapolis turned in an average defensive effort in rallying to outlast Atlanta, 31-25 in overtime. With Gardner's help, the Colts improved to 8-2, back into position for the AFC's No. 1 playoff seed.
Here's breaking down Gardner's first Colts performance, already matching how many wins he had with the Jets this season:
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Sauce Gardner stats vs. Falcons
- Tackles: 6
- INTs: 0
- Passes defended: 1
Gardner, seeing regular snaps outside at the corner, had four solo tackles in the game, tied for second on the team with safety Cam Bynum. He was also credited with two assists, giving him six total tackles.
He also had one notable pass defensed, when he jumped a perimeter route by wide receiver Drake London and couldn't handle what would have been an interception (and potential pick-six) of Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr.
London did end up with six catches for 104 yards and a touchdown on his eight targets. He also caught a two-point conversion late after a quiet second half. But much of that damage wasn't done vs. Gardner.
Sauce Gardner Colts debut grade
Gardner handled covering London whenever the latter was lining up outside. But he did later execute the Falcons' game plan with their No. 1 target, but needing to move him inside more away from Gardner.
Gardner was not called upon to travel to London in the slot. London's first-half 16-yard TD catch in the red zone happened on miscommunication in the middle of the field. He helped shut down London in the second half, save for the two-point play, on which Gardner slipped in trying to stay with London outside.
There was little learning curve for Gardner in Lou Anarumo's defense, creating a huge upgrade outside and causing the Falcons to disrupt the game plan with London late in the week. He was active and meshed well with Bynum and the rest of the secondary, despite the TD miscommunication.
Gardner made a solid impression on the Colts in victory. He will get a lot better in the scheme during the team's Week 11 bye. That's just in time for a huge test against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs' receivers in an epic Week 12 matchup.