With the long-term extensions for Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner, the New York Jets clarified their thoughts on the team’s brightest stars.
Gang Green gave the star receiver and cornerback four-year extensions worth over $120 million each. The total $250 million dished out to both standouts showed that the Jets believe Gardner and Wilson are pillars for the organization moving forward.
As the team prepares for their first training camp under a new regime, both of their pillars are going to be required to do more this season than they have ever been asked before.
And they are ready for that challenge.
Jets Superstars Ready For More
Gardner turned heads during media availability on Tuesday when he explained that he received his contract offer from New York on the same day as Wilson’s. The All-Pro cornerback chose to wait a day to give the team’s receiver a day of celebration on his own.
The Jets hope to see that level of professionalism and leadership from both players in the future.
Gardner is coming off a down year in 2024. After being the first cornerback in league history to receive All-Pro honors in each of his first two seasons, the Cincinnati product gave up the most yards of his pro career.
New York’s decision to still give him a $120 million deal shows that the team believes he can return to All-Pro status in 2025 and beyond.
That’s something Gardner won’t take for granted.
“It meant a lot to have that level of security, so I could just go out there and make plays,” Gardner said. “I feel like it complements the new regime and coaching staff. They’re going to put me and the rest of us in positions to make plays.
“Me and Garrett were talking, saying how we’ve got to compete and make it seem like we’re underpaid still.”
Wilson and Gardner understand they will be tasked with more than just putting up quality numbers across the board. They need to show they can be the kind of core talents who can anchor a playoff-caliber roster.
That is something Wilson is focused on more than anything else.
“Playing meaningful football,” Wilson said as part of his goals for the upcoming season. “You said the next thing, that’s the thing, the only thing. I feel like I haven’t done anything. Let’s play meaningful football. That’s all.”
When the Jets drafted Gardner and Wilson in the 2022 draft, the organization believed they had stars in the making. Through their first three seasons, both showed the kind of production that matched the original belief.
The only issue is that as good as the two have been, the results along the win column have not arrived.
With a new coaching staff leading the way, both believe the organization is close to ending New York’s decade-and-a-half run of futility.
Their extensions, signed last week, only show how committed the two are to seeing those goals come to fruition for the team in the immediate future.