Andrew Buller-Russ
Last year, when the Indianapolis Colts wanted to capitalize on a hot start, they pounced on a star. General manager Chris Ballard traded two first-round picks plus receiver Adonai Mitchell to the New York Jets in exchange for All-Pro cornerback Sauce Gardner. The move was mostly praised at the time, with the Colts landing a freakish talent who is still just 24 years old.
Unfortunately, the trade didn’t go according to plan. Injuries struck, and the Colts’ season fell apart. Sudden franchise quarterback Daniel Jones fractured his left fibula, then an Achilles tear wiped out the rest of his season after 13 games.
Meanwhile, Gardner, the Colts’ new prized acquisition, was only able to play in four games with Indianapolis after suffering a left calf strain. While Gardner is now back to 100% as the Colts ramp up for a new season, he’s catching some strays from an anonymous coach.
Gardner Sometimes Doesn’t ‘Play Zone Correctly’
Recently, ESPN polled NFL executives, scouts and coaches to rank the top 10 cornerbacks in the league today. To no surprise, the Denver Broncos ranked No. 1 overall. Yet, when the Colts were looking to upgrade their secondary, trading for Surtain wasn’t an option. Landing Gardner was.
According to ESPN’s poll, the Colts landed the NFL’s ninth-best cornerback in Gardner. Last year, he ranked fifth in the same poll. So, what happened? Why are NFL evaluators suddenly so much lower on the two-time Pro Bowler?
One unnamed NFL coach went so far as to say that “Sauce lost the sauce.”
“Sauce lost the sauce,” an NFL offensive coach said. “Now, he got traded for a reason — he’s a long strider and has the confidence to overshadow his weaknesses. He can press and play Cover 2. But he’s not going to tackle all the time, he’s not going to crack replace, and when playing zone, sometimes he’s not playing it correctly. It’s just hard for him to hold up over the course of the game.”
To be fair, Gardner did get traded mid-season, then was forced to learn a new defensive coordinator’s scheme on the fly. It’s not like he had months to practice and prepare in Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo’s system. It will be a different story when the 2026 season rolls around, with Gardner getting a full offseason to soak in the finer details of the Colts’ defense.
Another NFL personnel evaluator had mixed feelings about Gardner.
“Not many move like him. He moves like a much smaller man. But he’s not making plays at the same rate he was.”
If anything, perhaps these critical comments help serve as motivation for Gardner as he prepares for his fifth season in the NFL. The Colts still owe their 2027 first-round pick to the Jets, no matter how many losses they get. That means they’ll be expecting a lot out of their prized cornerback, and with the level of confidence Sauce has, he won’t back down from the challenge.
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