Do the New York Jets have the best cornerback in the NFL?
If you ask Pro Football Focus, Sauce Gardner is the best cornerback in the league. Gardner was yet again graded as the NFL’s best cornerback when sorting through the top 32 players at the position.
“Gardner’s 91.9 PFF coverage grade since 2022 leads the league,” PFF’s John Kosko wrote. “He has forced a league-high 46 incompletions and allowed a league-low 0.60 yards per cover snap and 21.4% first-down-plus-touchdown rate over that span.
“Unsurprisingly, Gardner’s PFF advanced coverage grade ranks first, as well. While he might not shadow opposing wide receivers at a high rate, he has excelled when asked to do so.”
Gardner didn’t match his lofty statistical output from prior years in 2024, but the Jets cornerback remains one of the league’s elite at his position.
A two-time First-Team All-Pro, the Cincinnati product is the only cornerback in NFL history to earn that honor in each of his first two seasons.
Even during what some labeled a “down year,” Gardner led all qualified corners by allowing just 24 receptions and was targeted the second-fewest times in the league.
With Aaron Glenn at the helm and Steve Wilks slotted as defensive coordinator, the Jets are expected to lean more heavily on press-man coverage behind extra pressure—a scheme that plays directly to Gardner’s strengths.
The 24-year-old has consistently excelled in one-on-one matchups and could be poised for a breakout season in terms of takeaways, an area where production has yet to catch up to his dominance fully.
Should the takeaways follow, Sauce Gardner’s case as the league’s best cornerback will become undeniable. The New York Jets sure hope that turns out to be the case.
