The Jets won’t call Sauce Gardner by his nickname just yet. Teammates say he should win it

The New York Jets have an exciting rookie cornerback with an even more interesting nickname. Ahmad Gardner, who says “Sauce,” was selected with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft and is expected to make an immediate impact in Robert Saleh’s defense. “Sauce” is a scrappy athlete who doesn’t lack confidence, but his new teammates have yet to accept his nickname.

During an interview with NFL Network, veteran Jets linebacker CJ Mosley said Gardner needs to earn his nickname at the next level.

“We told him if he gets two pick-sixes in the preseason, then we might give him some gravy,” Mosley said. via NFL.com. “And he’s got to be against the 1s, too, so not 2s, 3s, backups, all that. Most likely, we’ll start calling him Sauce when he makes a big play in the regular season.”

For now, Gardner goes by “AG” — what Coach Saleh also calls him.

“He’s got an attitude and a chip on his shoulder. I’ve never seen a rookie trash talk so much, but it’s good,” Saleh said. “He’s an interesting young man. He loves where it’s at mentally. He’s still got a long way to go in terms of understanding the game and all that stuff, but he’s a sponge and he understands it all.”

Gardner was a consensus All-American and AAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2021, and it won’t take him long to “earn back” his nickname. In fact, he loves the challenge, saying he “wouldn’t have it any other way”.