The Colts on Tuesday acquired cornerback Sauce Gardner in a trade with the New York Jets in exchange for their 2026 and 2027 first-round picks and wide receiver Adonai Mitchell.
Gardner was the Jets' fourth overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft and immediately earned a starting role as a rookie. He quickly established himself as a top cornerback in the league, earning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year accolades in 2022 and first-team All-Pro honors in 2022 and 2023. He is the only cornerback since 1970 to be named first-team All-Pro in both of his first two seasons.
In 55 career games played, Gardner has three interceptions, 46 passes defensed, one sack and 201 tackles in his career. In his first seven games of 2025, he totaled six passes defensed and 20 tackles. He has not allowed more than two receptions to a single receiver in a game this season and has forced a tight window (less than one yard of separation) on 52 percent of his targets for the highest rate of any player targeted at least 20 times in coverage, per Next Gen Stats.
Gardner has held opposing quarterbacks to a passer rating of 71.4 and allowed a 50.3 percent completion rate when targeted in his career, per Pro Football Focus.
In joining the Colts, Gardner provides a massive boost to a Colts secondary that has dealt with injuries and turnover at the cornerback spot. Gardner will presumable play alongside starters Kenny Moore II and Jaylon Jones, as Charvarius Ward Sr. remains on injured reserve with a concussion. The earliest Ward is eligible to return is Week 12.
Gardner will also be reuniting with a fellow Cincinnati Bearcat in the Colts locker room; he and wide receiver Alec Pierce were college teammates from 2019-2021, frequently going up against each other in practice and learning a great deal from each other in the process. Pierce described Gardner as "super competitive" and someone who has only continued to improve in the NFL.
Wide receiver Adonai Mitchell, the Colts' second-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, will go to the Jets as part of the trade. Mitchell has appeared in 25 games (8) starts and has 32 receptions on 71 targets for 464 yards and no touchdowns. He played a total of 124 offensive snaps in eight game this season with nine receptions for 152 yards.
"Having the opportunity to acquire a talented player like Sauce Gardner was one we did not want to pass on," general manager Chris Ballard said in a statement. "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."
Next up at Lucas Oil Stadium:
NOV. 30 – COLTS VS. TEXANS
Giveaway: My Cause My Cleats keychain for first 40,000 fans to enter stadium
Single game tickets available **here!**
