Sauce Gardner became a phenom and household name around the league as a rookie and was the Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2022.
The New York Jets gave Gardner the kind of contract reserved for a cornerstone piece of the franchise. Now a few years removed from that accolade he’s walking into Week 1 of the 2025 season as one of the NFL’s most overpaid.
Gardner was highlighted on the league’s “All-Overpaid Team,” a preseason list that calls out players whose production hasn’t lived up to their paychecks.
For the Jets’ star cornerback, the timing couldn’t be worse. He just became the highest-paid corner in NFL history, signing a four-year, $120.4 million extension with $85.6 million guaranteed. With that type of contract it signals that he's a guy the Jets believe in, however he hasn't generated that type of production since his rookie season.
As the 25-year-old set the league on fire as a rookie in 2022, locking down top receivers and allowing just 5.3 yards per target. But the shine has worn off. In 2023, his yards allowed per target rose to 6.0, and by 2024, it ballooned to 9.3. Penalties, missed tackles and a lack of playmaking have crept into his game, leaving the Jets wondering if his best season came right out of the gate.
The former No. 4 overall pick when asked about his dip in play cited that criticisms of his recent seasons are to do with him being a high profile player than his overall production.
"I'm Sauce," Gardner said on reporting day for Jets veterans. "I mean that in the most humble way. Like no matter what I do, they're going to make a huge deal out of it. I can miss a tackle. There's a lot of people that miss tackles, but I just understand that I'm me. So people are just going to like blow things out of proportion, Gardner said.”
What makes the contract even riskier is how far into the future the money stretches. New York owes Gardner more than $53 million in guaranteed cash across 2027 and 2028. That commitment means the Jets aren’t just betting on him today.
The team is tying their cap flexibility to his performance for years. If Gardner can’t reverse the slide, it could haunt the team’s roster-building plans deep into the decade.
At 25, he still has the athleticism and instincts that made him a star in college and a sensation in the pros. But the NFL is a league that moves fast, and reputations change even faster. Over the past two years, Gardner has been more ordinary than elite, a tough reality for a player now carrying superstar money.
That’s the weight he carries into Week 1, with the spotlight brighter than ever. The Jets banked on Gardner being their defensive anchor. Now it’s on him to show he’s worth every cent.