The Colts pulled off a blockbuster trade on Tuesday when they acquired cornerback Sauce Gardner from the Jets.
Acquiring Gardner required the Colts to trade their first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 as well as wide receiver AD Mitchell. It’s a high price, but it is one that General Manager Chris Ballard said in a statement that the Colts were more than willing to pay in order to acquire a player with Gardner’s credentials.
“Having the opportunity to acquire a talented player like Sauce Gardner was one we did not want to pass on,” Ballard said. “He was a player that we scouted heavily coming out of college and there’s a reason he was the fourth overall pick. Sauce is a proven cornerback. His skill and competitive nature will elevate everyone’s play on the defensive unit. We’re thrilled he’s a Colt. On the same note, AD Mitchell is a great person and a great player. We believe he will have success in New York, and we wish him the best as he enters the next chapter of his career.”
Gardner was an All-Pro in his first two seasons before slipping along with the rest of the Jets in 2024. His play has rebounded this season and the Colts are hoping he’ll rise to an even higher level now that he’s playing for a team that hopes to make a playoff run come January.
For a team that was resisting a fire sale, the Jets are currently standing in front of a burned-out building with a credit-card reader.
And they’ve added three first-round picks, and more. (Which arguably makes it anything but a “fire sale"; it’s more like full retail.)
First, they sent cornerback Sauce Gardner to the Colts. Now, the Jets have shipped defensive tackle Quinnen Williams to the Cowboys.
The Cowboys, per multiple reports, are giving a first-round and a second-round pick to the Jets for Williams. Per NFL Media, it’s the Cowboys’ first-round pick and not the first-round pick they acquired from the Packers for Micah Parsons. The Jets also will be getting former first-round defensive tackle Mazi Smith.
Williams was the third overall pick in the 2019 draft. He was a first-team All-Pro in 2022, and he’s a three-time Pro Bowler.
He now joins one of the worst defenses in the NFL, a 3-5-1 team that is facing a steep uphill climb to the playoffs.
Williams is signed through 2027. His base salary for 2025 is $15.65 million. Next year, it increases to $20.75 million. In 2027, it becomes $25.4 million.
Everyone was surprised by Tuesday’s news that the Jets had traded cornerback Sauce Gardner to the Colts.
Including Sauce Gardner.
Via Rich Cimini of ESPN.com, Sauce Gardner and his brother/agent Allante Gardner has “no inkling” that a trade was coming. They found out about it at 12:15 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
Sauce received a phone call from coach Aaron Glenn.
Said Allante Gardner, via Cimini: “I called Ahmad. He’s in great spirits. I told him this is a business decision and he understands that. The Jets made a business decision. They couldn’t turn it down and Ahmad deserves to be on a winning football team.”
Sauce now is. From 1-7 to 7-2. From a perennial non-contender to a team that has entered the Super Bowl window.
Making the Jets’ decision to trade cornerback Sauce Gardner even more stunning is the decision they made in the offseason to extend him.
In June, the Jets signed Gardner to a four-year extension with a new-money average of $30.1 million per year. It made him the highest-paid player at his position, by $100,000 annually.
But the deal carried only a $13.75 million signing bonus and a salary of $1.25 million in 2025. They’ve paid him $14.375 million; the Colts will pick up the balance of the deal — starting with $25.5 million in 2026.
The cap charges aren’t excessive. Because the trade happened after June 1, there’s no additional 2025 charge. In 2026, they’ll carry the $2.75 million allocation that was already on the books, plus another $8.25 million in acceleration.
And so the Jets dump the contract, absorb a relatively small cap hit, and pick up two first-round selection and receiver AD Mitchell.
The Jets will also be getting a receiver in their deal with the Colts for cornerback Sauce Gardner.
According to multiple reports, AD Mitchell is being traded to New York to complete the deal.
That means in all, the Jets will receive Indianapolis’ first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 plus Mitchell, in exchange for Gardner.
A second-round pick in 2024, Mitchell had not caught on as a productive player with the Colts. After making 23 receptions for 312 yards as a rookie last year, he looked like he was having a breakout game in Week 4 against the Rams. But Mitchell infamously dropped the ball just before reaching the end zone for a touchdown, with the ball going out of the end zone for a touchback.
Since then, Mitchell had played only single-digit snaps in four games, making a total of two receptions for a total of 15 yards.
In all, Mitchell has nine catches for 152 yards this season.
