It’s no secret the Jets have had a turbulent 14 years since their last playoff appearance.
But cornerback Sauce Gardner wants to be one of the players who could potentially change that.
Now that the 2024 season is complete, Gardner is eligible for a contract extension after finishing his third NFL season and it appears he wants to stay with the team long-term.
“We got to see,” Gardner said last week. “I just take it one day at a time. I’m going to let my agent handle that. Obviously, I want to be part of this for a long time.
“I want to be part of this for a long time. Obviously, one person can’t change it, but I want to be one of the reasons it changes. I’m going to let my agent handle it and he is going to do his job and I’m going to focus on doing mine.”
The 2024 season was a down year for Gardner after his outstanding first two years in the league. He registered 49 tackles, nine pass breakups and one interception after battling a hamstring injury late in the year. During his first two seasons in the league, Gardner averaged 66 tackles and 16 pass breakups.
Gardner was also selected as a first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowler during his first two years. He was also named the 2022 Defensive Rookie of the Year.
However, when opposing quarterbacks targeted Gardner this season, they completed 56.9% of their passes and had an 86.9 passer rating, according to Pro Football Reference.
“I thought there was moments where his greatness was on full display, there was some growth with him too that I thought was amazing in a lot of ways and there is also times where he would admit too, where he left some stuff out there,” Jets interim coach Jeff Ulbrich said about Gardner. “He is capable of making some plays that maybe he didn’t make but that goes on every human being in this building, we all fell short in some capacity, but it wasn’t all bad.”
Gardner’s tackling was more problematic than ever before. He had a missed tackle rate of 17.5%, according to Pro Football Focus, ranking him 80th out of 96 qualified cornerbacks. He also committed 11 penalties after only five during his first two seasons.
“I feel like it was really OK,” Gardner said about his 2024 season. “Obviously, my standard that I got for myself and set for myself is on a different level. It’s just me being my biggest critic.
“My season this year, is not at my standard, but it would be an elite season depending on who you are talking about. I had a lot of missed tackles and I’m going to clean that up this offseason. In coverage, I did pretty good. In all three years, this is probably my lowest targeted season. I felt like it was OK.”
Obviously, the Jets have a lot to consider this offseason, including finding a new general manager and coach after Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh were both fired amidst a 5-12 season. They must also decide on Aaron Rodgers‘ future, as his contract has zero guaranteed money remaining.
However, the new GM will undoubtedly consider keeping players like Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson, who were part of the Jets’ 2022 golden draft class. Along with Gardner and Wilson, edge rusher Jermaine Johnson and running back Breece Hall are also eligible to receive contract extensions this offseason.
Wilson is also expected to be looking for a long-term contract. There is also speculation Wilson could ask for a trade after being noncommittal about wanting to remain with the club last month.
Gang Green does have Gardner under contract for likely two more seasons. The team will likely exercise Gardner’s fifth-year option, which is projected to be at $20.4 million, according to Over the Cap.
Speaking of a new coach, the Jets have interviewed nine candidates so far, with more to come. Gardner would like to see certain attributes in the next coach.
“Somebody that’s a leader, somebody that doesn’t lack confidence,” Gardner said. “When you are leading a group of men, they are watching everything that coach does. So just being confident in everything that he do.
“You can’t come in here with this mindset, like, let’s just win a few games or let’s just win more games than last year. You have to come in here with a mentality and mindset to win it all — go to the playoffs, go to the Super Bowl. That’s just what it’s got to be. Everything that we do to lead up to that has to be right.”