Sources – Jets, CB -Sauce Gardner reach 4 years, $ 120.4 million extension

Another day, another larger contract extension for the New York Jets.

Twenty of four hours after a long-term contract extension with the broad recipient Garrett Wilson, the Jets rewarded the star cornerback sauce Gardner with a record contract a four-year extension of $ 120.4 million, according to Tuesday sources.

The contract is guaranteed to comprise $ 85,653 million, said a source of Adam Schefter from ESPN.

The two-time all-Pro becomes the highest cornerback of the NFL, based on the average salary per year ($ 30.1 million). He surpasses the star of Houston Texans Derek Stingley Jr., who received an extension of three years by $ 90 million in March. Singley finished third in 2022, a place in front of Gardner.

“I appreciate the jets organization for belief in me, my teammates for blood, sweat and tears that we enter, and Jet's nation … I guess that they support me … Thank you, God,” wrote Gardner to X and thanks his brother Allante Gardner and AJ Vaynerchuk, who represents him.

Sauce Gardner had two years in his rookie contract, including its option for the fifth year in 2026 ($ 20.2 million guaranteed).

The jets have now secured two basic players by 2030 and followed a proactive approach that is rarely seen with previous stars in the history of the franchise. Gardner and Wilson were the first two former picks in the first round as part of the current financial system of the NFL, which came into force in 2011 to receive extensions in their first year of justification (after three years).

Gardner has been the first Jets player since Linebacker CJ Mosley, who paid the highest in the league in his respective position. In 2019, Mosley signed a five-year contract of $ 85 million as Free Agent. His $ 17 million average was first place under off-ball linackers for four months.

Gardner, 24, made it clear to the recent Minicamp that he wanted to stay with the jets in the long term.

“I want to change the organization,” he said. “I want to be part of the change in the organization.”

The new regime of the Jets under the direction of coach Aaron Glenn and General Manager Darren Mougey said from the start that his goal was to keep the best young players what the regime had not managed to do.

Gardner had an immediate effect and recorded NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2022. He is the only cornerback since the NFL AfL fusion in 1970, which was recognized in his first two seasons as an all-project-all-pro-fusion. Only two other defenders have organized this: former New York Giants legend Lawrence Taylor and Dallas Cowboys pass the Rusher Micah Parsons.

As rookie, Gardner took number 2 under the cornerbacks in EPA (expected points added)/per finish as the closest defender (at least 400 cover snapshots) per statistics of the next gene. He slipped to 13th place in 2023 and 47.