New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner will be entering his fourth season in the NFL. His fifth-year option was picked up for the 2026 NFL season and it will be interesting to see if the Jets will give him a long-term extension or not.
With New York selecting him fourth overall in the 2022 NFL Draft from the Cincinnati Bearcats, it appears as if he will be one of the cornerstone pieces of this defense for the long haul. However, with the Jets not making the playoffs since 2010, they are looking to end the drought with a new regime in place. If New York has another bad 2025 season, will Gardner want to stay or ask out?
CBS Sports Analyst Creates Mock Trade By Having New York Jets Trade Sauce Gardner To NFC Contender
CBS Sports writer Cody Benjamin created five different NBA style like mock trades to the NFL level. One mock trade he had was between the Jets and the Green Bay Packers. Benjamin has the Packers trading for Gardner and the Jets would get offensive lineman Sean Rhyan, linebacker Quay Walker, and a 2026 second-round NFL draft pick. Benjamin said,
“The Packers may be content banking on their current secondary to offset the presence of Jaire Alexander, an All-Pro cover man when healthy. This is title-chasing time with Jordan Love, however, and Gardner is one of the best young players in the NFL, still awaiting a lucrative extension in New York.
After an aggressive play to deepen the receiving depth chart via the draft, the Pack could address the other boundary here, reinstituting some attitude to the cornerback spot at Lambeau. Yes, Gardner is already a cornerstone of the Jets defense, but perhaps new head coach Aaron Glenn would rather construct a unit of his own, auctioning Gardner while he’s still an ascending talent in order to flesh out the rest of the team. His former employer, the Lions, managed pretty well by first collecting assets in their own rebuild.”
With Alexander being released, the Packers are not deep at cornerback. They signed Nate Hobbs in free agency, who played with the Las Vegas Raiders during the 2024 season. Gardner being the number one cornerback for the Packers would be a huge boost for this defense.
However, despite some of the issues on Green Bay’s defense, they have a bigger need for a pass rusher rather than a cornerback. Although, Gardner on the Packers defense would not be a bad thing. He would provide a different element for Green Bay’s defense. The Jets probably wouldn’t trade away Gardner, and they will probably give him a new contract extension when the time comes.
Gardner during the 2024 season with the Jets recorded 49 tackles, one sack, one interception, and nine pass deflections. However, this trade could feel realistic because New York does need offensive line help and Walker has been mentioned in trade rumors for Green Bay. Gardner won’t be traded now, but if he does ask out of the Jets organization after the 2025 season, then this will be something to revisit.
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