Cornerback Sauce Gardner, who signed a massive extension with the Jets in July and was billed as a foundational piece of the team’s future, was traded to the Colts on Tuesday.
It’s almost certainly the most shocking trade in franchise history. And the Colts paid a premium for it, giving the Jets two first-round picks in return for Gardner. One in 2026 and one in 2027, according to multiple reports.
The Jets are also receiving Colts receiver Adonai Mitchell in the trade, according to ESPN.
That’s good value for the Jets, but it comes with a lot of questions and potential problems. And of course, the biggest question of all, is it smart to trade away a well-respected player who was on pace to be one of the best in franchise history, even if the return is great?
Gardner is already onto Indianapolis (and could make his debut against the Falcons in Berlin on Sunday, after missing the Jets win over the Bengals with a concussion), posting a farewell to Jets fans on social media moments before the deal went public.
“New York it’s been real,” Gardner posted with a green heart emoji.
Here’s our snap analysis of what this stunning deal means.
∗ The fan base is already massively frustrated with coach Aaron Glenn and owner Woody Johnson after the team’s 1-7 start. Now they. just traded away one of the team’s most accomplished and well-liked players, months after selling the fans base on building the future around him. How will fans feel about their plan now, which has clearly changed.
∗ The Jets also signed Garrett Wilson to a massive extension this summer, the day before they extended Gardner. They were drafted in the same 2022 NFL Draft class, six picks apart and regularly talked about turning the Jets into a winner together. Now Gardner is gone. How will Wilson, who has not hid his frustration with losing, feel about that? Or is this the first step in a rebuild and is Wilson about to be dealt?
∗ Part of the reason Jets fans are frustrated with Glenn is that he billed the team as ready to win now, and then started with seven straight losses including three in which they held the lead in the fourth quarter. But beyond Wilson, how are the players in the locker room going to feel about a move that clearly makes them worse in the short term?
∗ This does set up the Jets with a ton of assets for a huge offseason push in 2026. They were already sixth among all NFL teams in available cap space heading into the upcoming offseason with $80 million to spend, according to Over The Cap. With Gardner’s $12.25 million cap hit coming off the books, only the Raiders, Titans and Chargers will have more to spend than the Jets. The Jets are also on pace to have a very high pick in the first round of next year’s daft, which combined with the two picks they secured in this deal could give them ammo to make a trade for a big-time player — perhaps a proven quarterback, which the Jets are clearly in the market for.
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