Before the Hard Knocks cameras get up close and personal with the NFL’s defensive rookie of the year Sauce Gardner, he joined the Pivot to discuss his first season in the league.
Gardner shared his favorite receivers that are currently tearing up the league, including Stefon Diggs, Tyreek Hill, Justin Jefferson and Davante Adams, then revealed his top-five all-time greats.
“For one, Ocho (Chad Johnson). I watch him a lot. I watch him a lot,” Gardner said. “Growing up playing receiver, he was the only guy I watched. You know I got a lot of my trash talking from like, especially at receiver, I used to be stealing his lingo. Jerry Rice, Randy Moss. Steve Smith, he’d be talking crazy for me… I gotta say Megatron (Calvin Johnson). He was my favorite receiver when I was in Detroit.”
Just 22 years old, Gardner earned some laughs from the Pivot hosts for the recency bias in his choices.
The former first-round draft pick out of Cincinnati proved he was capable of covering the best in the league in his first season. Gardner had 75 total tackles, including two tackles for loss, and two interceptions.
In response to his list of greats, Gardner got a profane reaction from Ocho Cinco on Twitter.
Gardner wows in first season with Jets
The Jets selected Sauce Gardner with the fourth pick of the 2022 NFL Draft and he’s done nothing but live up to expectations ever since.
He led the NFL in passes defended as a rookie. He notched 20, with two interceptions. Those stats were good enough to make him a first-team All-Pro. He also became the first cornerback to earn defensive rookie of the year since future Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott did so in 1981.
Not completely perfect, Gardner did allow two touchdowns in his rookie campaign, however, he still generated a -28.8 target EPA, second-best among all corners, per Next Gen Stats.
His new teammate and practice opponent Aaron Rodgers had extremely high praise for him and fellow 2022 draftee Garrett Wilson after working with the duo this offseason.
“We’ve got, at some point possibly, the best corner and the best receiver in the NFL,” Rodgers said, via the New York Post. “It’s a legit possibility for those two guys.
“Maybe not this upcoming year — I still think Davante [Adams] is in a league of his own — but those two kids are so talented.”
The Jets start training camp earlier than most NFL teams this year. Rookies and veterans report on July 19. The team plays the Browns in the Hall of Fame game on Aug. 3, which kicks off the preseason slate.
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