Is Sauce Gardner on track to add to his multi-All-Pro team awards? The Indianapolis Colts' two-time Pro Bowl cornerback is about to kick off his first full season with the team after spending the first four years of his NFL career with the New York Jets. It's been three years since Gardner has made an All-Pro team, but he could be heading back soon.
Gardner and the Colts are up against it this season, with massive stakes on the line after missing the postseason for five straight seasons. Hoping to break that ugly streak in the near future, the mid-season trade for Gardner last season was a hopeful step in that direction. Unfortunately, the Colts failed to make any noise, but Gardner's presence with his new team is felt nonetheless.
Gardner is considered a top cornerback in the NFL, certainly a top-five, and his partner on the other side of the field is also one of the best, Charvarius Ward, a Second-team All-Pro player himself and Super Bowl champion.
ESPN tabs both Indianapolis Colts' Sauce Gardner and Charvarius Ward to garner All-Pro attention
Together, Gardner and Ward form a top-of-the-league cornerback duel. The question is: If Gardner could be in the running for another All-Pro nod, could Ward also be on the same track?
It's a stretch, but ESPN's Seth Walder has in mind an All-Pro consideration for both Colts' cornerbacks. It's not so far out there, considering both Gardner and Ward have already claimed All-Pro status. Still, two players playing the same position on the same team rarely receive All-Pro consideration in the same season, never mind all-out winning spots.
Given their combined talent at cornerback and their previous league-wide recognition, Gardner and Ward are certainly of the caliber of players who could make any of the All-Pro teams this season, but how realistic that will be is another story. According to Walder, it's not a prediction, but he isn't counting out Ward, while he fully backs Gardner to make a team.
"I could see him [Gardner] having a great 2026 with a full season in Indianapolis," Walder wrote. "He is by far the most likely of the two to get first-team recognition, but I wanted to include Ward because he has always put up strong coverage numbers, too."
With the Colts last season, Gardner allowed a completion rate of 54%, giving up just 7.3 yards per catch, with three pass breakups in just four games played. After a full offseason with the team and a full regular season just ahead, Gardner is expected to have a great season, and the Colts desperately need it from him.
As for Ward, he missed 10 games last season due to injury, but allowed a completion rate of 57% on 37 targets with seven pass breakups in those games. Ward is coming into a new season healthy again, so the partnership with Gardner is one of the Colts' biggest things to look forward to.
For opposing offenses and quarterbacks, well, they have to throw the football somewhere, and not every pass will be in the middle of the field. It's just a matter of which side of the field they're less scared of: Gardner's or Ward's. All-Pro's for both players? Unlikely. A great season from Ward and an All-Pro for Gardner? Likely.
Add us as a preferred source on Google