The Indianapolis Colts' trade for Sauce Gardner remains one of the most polarizing moves in recent franchise history. The Colts managed to add someone as good at the singular act of covering receivers as anyone else in the game, but it cost them two very valuable first-round picks in the 2026 and 2027 NFL Drafts, along with a receiver who has some juice in Adonai Mitchell.
Gardner's stock has been higher as far as his perception across the league is concerned. CBS Sports' Pete Prisco ranked Gardner as the 23rd-best player in the NFL...aged 25 or younger. Apparently, the All-Pros and consistency mean nothing in the eyes of Prisco, who ranked Gardner 48th among all players in the NFL.
The Colts are getting a crash course in what New York Jets fans had to put up with for years. Gardner is one of the best cornerbacks in the league, but his flaws are exaggerated by media narratives to such an extreme point that it impugns his status as one of the game's elite shutdown players. How is Cooper DeJean ranked above him?
Indianapolis Colts fans learning how criticized CB Sauce Gardner can be
During Gardner's first two years in the league, both of which ended with All-Pro nods, he was ranked at or near the top of most coverage stats. Even as he took a step back from those lofty heights, his yards per route run against were near the bottom of the league. There's a reason the Jets paid him $30 million per year and the Colts invested so heavily in him.
Gardner's issues are that he is not a particularly amazing tackler and his lack of interceptions. As is often the case with elite cornerbacks, it is quite hard to pile up the picks when no one throws at you. The tackling is never going to be amazing, even though he did make some improvements over the last few years.
However, his tackling is often weaponized by haters looking for any ground to tear him down. Is he Patrick Surtain II right now? No. Is he closer to him than DeJean? Yes.
The debate over Indy giving up what many perceive to be too much for his services and the thought of trading for a cornerback as their all-in contention move is worth having, but to tear Gardner down as a player when just about every set of data he provides you with suggests he is an elite performer makes no sense.
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