Tag: Sauce Gardner

Causes for concern as the Bills face the Jets in Week 6

Causes for concern as the Bills face the Jets in Week 6

The Buffalo Bills will head to Metlife Stadium to take on the New York Jets on Monday Night Football in Week 6.

The divisional clash will feature Bills (3-2) and Jets (2-3) teams that both lost last week.

The winner of Monday’s game will be the leader in the division. If the Bills win, they will gain a stranglehold on the division even after an up-and-down start to the season.

For the Bills to improve to 4-2 and take a two-game lead in the AFC East, they will need to be wary of these three things from the Jets on Monday:

Pass coverage

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Sauce Gardner and DJ Reed are arguably the best cornerback duo in the NFL. They are a big reason the team is ranked second in the the NFL in both total defense and pass defense. According to PFF, Reed is graded as the best cornerback in the league through five weeks. His 90.8 coverage grade is second in the entire NFL to the 49ers’ Fred Warner.

Despite losing last week, the Jets held a red-hot Minnesota Vikings offense to just 179 passing yards. Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold posted a 50.3 passer rating while completing just 14 passes on 31 attempts (45%). Last week, Josh Allen posted even worse numbers than those. He and offensive coordinator Joe Brady need a bounceback game in the worst way. It’s a tough matchup for the Bills after their wide receivers struggled against the Houston Texans.

Pass rush

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It’s not just the coverage downfield that makes the Jets’ defense a nightmare. The big guys up front can reach the quarterback with the best of them. The Jets are fourth in the NFL in sacks with 18. Jets edge rusher Will McDonald IV is tied for second in the league in sacks with 6.

After Allen was pressured on 41.7% of his dropbacks against the Texans, the Bills offense now faces a team who can get after the QB in the same way.

For all the times Allen was under pressure in Week 5, he didn’t complete a single pass when pressured. Protection for Allen needs to be on point Monday or McDonald and company will have a major impact. And, receivers need to get open as well.

Unpredictability?

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The Jets promoted defensive coordinator to interim head coach after firing head coach Robert Saleh. They also changed offensive playcallers. Todd Downing takes over for Nathaniel Hackett as the team’s singal caller. After five weeks, ownership had seen enough of the same old problems.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers ranks 26th in the NFL in passer rating and has a 7-4 touchdown ratio. But still, the shakeup within the organization was unexpected.

As far as what the Bills can expect from Jets, there probably won’t be too much difference in what they were last week. There may be a couple added wrinkles in playcalls. Regardless, it will be a good test for head coach Sean McDermott and coordinators Joe Brady and Bobby Babich.

Jets vs. Bills: 3 key matchups to watch in Week 6

Jets vs. Bills: 3 key matchups to watch in Week 6

The New York Jets will face the Buffalo Bills in their upcoming Week 6 matchup.

Even with it being an AFC East clash, it will still be the games, within the game, that will make all the difference.

Here are three key matchups to watch during Monday’s Jets (2-3) against the Bills (3-2) matchup:

DE Micheal Clemons vs. OL Dion Dawkins

(USAT)

Let’s be honest, this is all about off the field.

In the past, Dawkins and Clemons have had flare ups during games. It has turned into a war of words at times.

Most recently, Dawkins had a laugh on social media about the Jets firing head coach Robert Saleh this week. These two might have some fireworks between them.

CB Sauce Gardner vs. WR Keon Coleman

(Imagn)

The Jets have an excellent secondary. The Bills do not have many weapons around quarterback Josh Allen and their top target, wide receiver Khalil Shakir (ankle), might not play.

Whether it’s Gardner or DJ Reed, they should feast on Coleman. Buffalo’s second-round rookie receiver has had a few moments in his career but not many. No big breakout games.

RB Breece Hall vs. LB Terrel Bernard

(Getty)

Like the Bills offense, the Jets struggled on that side of the ball last week as well. However, New York’s issues have been going on for most of the NFL season. The reason why is easy to see.

It will be a full-defensive effort to stop a rushing attack. But Bernard leads that unit. When New York can’t run the ball, quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been forced into mistakes because their game plan becomes predictable. That will play into the Bills’ hand as their secondary is very good, too.

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Salutations to Saleh but Jets’ interim HC Jeff Ulbrich is an upgrade

Salutations to Saleh but Jets’ interim HC Jeff Ulbrich is an upgrade

Goodbye Robert Saleh, and hello to the man that should be credited with maintaining team chemistry in the New York Jets locker room.

Interim HC Jeff Ulbrich has instilled a military mindset into a Jets’ defense that ranks No. 3 in opponent touchdowns allowed per game. The pre-game gatherings of defensive back Sauce Gardner and company stems from the ferocious leadership of Ulbrich who has helped ignite the potential of many, including D.J Reed and defensive end Will McDonald.

Unlike Saleh, Ulbrich won’t allow for offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett to ruin momentum with mundane play-calling. Sure, Hackett may have survived this round of bingo, but with Ulbrich in charge Jets’ fans will see an increased amount of scrutiny applied to Hackett. Therein lies the underlying disdain of Saleh amongst Jets’ fans, his unwillingness to correct the offensive approach. 

Ulbrich led as defensive coordinator with real humility, being sure to refrain from meddling with the offensive personnel and forbidding from stepping on Hackett’s toes. During Sunday’s loss, NFL Network reporters conveyed that there had been a quiet aura on the Jets’ sideline and this may suggest that a growing division may have been emerging.

Ultimately, Ulbrich is an upgrade and if he can help change the offensive strategy, the Jets still have a chance in 2024. 

Jets’ Quincy Williams has stern response to loss against the Vikings

Jets’ Quincy Williams has stern response to loss against the Vikings

No excuses came from the New York Jets defense following their loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 5.

The London clash ended 23-17 final in disappointing circumstances… for the offense. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ third and final interception sealed the defeat.

Linebacker Quincy Williams was quick to hold his team to a high standard after the final whistle.

“I’m going to be honest, people get tired of hearing the same [expletive],” Williams told SNY. “People got to take accountability.”

With such a stern response, it feels like Williams wasn’t exactly pointing fingers, but it would be understandable as to why he felt the way he did.

After allowing some early points, the New York’s defense slammed the door shut on a high-flying Vikings offense. Even so, the Jets’ offense could not close the gap.

In a bit of a separate way, cornerback Sauce Gardner was not in the mood to make any excuses either. He specifically spoke to penalties being called against the Jets.

“We did pretty good. Obviously, got quite a few calls, quite a few pass interferences, never called on us. It’s our job to play, the refs make calls. Ain’t nobody perfect,” Gardner said in the locker room. “I think we did a pretty good job.”

In the outing, Williams recovered a fumble to go along with the six tackles. Gardner had two tackles, a pass defended and a nearly an interception in the end zone. He was also flagged for a few penalties as he pointed out.

For more from Williams, see the attached SNY clip below:

Jets’ Sauce Gardner leaves Vikings matchup with head injury

Jets’ Sauce Gardner leaves Vikings matchup with head injury

The New York Jets are down their top defensive back against the Minnesota Vikings in London.

Cornerback Sauce Gardner went down in the third quarter of the matchup as the Jets trailed 17-7 on the scoreboard.

On a crossing pattern run by the Vikings offense, Gardner collided with teammate Quincy Williams. The linebacker hit Gardner as he was not looking.

After walking off the field with medical staff, Gardner eventually left the field and walked to the locker room.

Jets Wire will provide updates as information is made available.

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Jets vs. Vikings: Justin Jefferson has landed in a ‘no fly zone’ with Sauce Gardner

Jets vs. Vikings: Justin Jefferson has landed in a ‘no fly zone’ with Sauce Gardner

Despite criticism, defensive back Sauce Gardner and the New York Jets defense still rank No. 2 in the NFL in opponent pass yards allowed per game.

Gardner understands that covering Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson won’t be an easy tasks, but that’s why defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich is likely to blitz and use multiple coverage scheme.

The physicality at the line of scrimmage will dictate this game and if the Vikings pass protection can’t hold, that means Gardner won’t be stuck in man coverage long.

While Gardner is an excellent defender, he’s an even better teammate, understanding his role in helping his unit yield coverage sacks with the assistance of defensive back D.J Reed.

Both Gardner and Reed’s excellence will be required for the Jets to win in London and everyone knows that starts with slowing down Jefferson.

Jets vs. Vikings: 3 key matchups to watch in Week 5

Jets vs. Vikings: 3 key matchups to watch in Week 5

The New York Jets will face the Minnesota Vikings in their upcoming Week 5 matchup.

Even with it being a a cross-conference clash, it will still be the games, within the game, that will make all the difference.

Here are three key matchups to watch during Sunday’s Jets (2-2) against the Vikings (4-0) matchup:

CB Sauce Gardner vs. WR Justin Jefferson

(USAT)

This one needs little introduction.

Gardner is considered among the NFL’s best at his position. The same can be said for Jefferson.

It’s a battle of heavyweights here which will be fun to watch.

OL Olu Fashanu vs. ED Pat Jones II

(Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)

The Jets offensive line, as a whole, must play better than they did last week. New York’s first-round rookie in Olu Fashanu did not play well in his first start. Pro Football Focus dropped his overall grade for the season all the way down to 45.3 after that outing, which is the third-worst of any tackle in the NFL.

Fashanu will see plenty of edge defender Pat Jones II. The Vikings defender has five sacks.

LB Jamien Sherwood vs. QB Sam Darnold

(Imagn)

As is always the case, it’s a full-defensive effort to stop an opposing quarterback. However, CJ Mosley (toe) is unlikely to play again meaning Sherwood will be in position to be the “quarterback” of the Jets defense once again. He needs to make sure that the Jets defense is in position to stop Darnold throughout the day. Mosley would have had a bit of a leg up on Sherwood, potentially. He was one of Darnold’s former teammates in New York.

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Jets’ Sauce Gardner deletes tweet defending performance vs. Broncos

Jets’ Sauce Gardner deletes tweet defending performance vs. Broncos

Sauce Gardner did not appear to be part of the problem in the New York Jets’ loss to the Denver Broncos in Week 4, but he wasn’t really wanting to hear about the game after it.

Following the 10-9 final, Gardner took to social media and replied to a message sent his way. On X/Twitter, the cornerback messaged his stats back to someone that was critical of his efforts. It was eventually deleted but the internet can live forever:

Clearly not happy about the outcome, Gardner was likely just expressing his frustrations. It happens.

New York’s secondary, Gardner included, held Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix to just 60 yards passing.

They held up their end of the bargain.

However, Pro Football Focus does say something slightly different about his stats. While Gardner did have five tackles, the football analytics outlet credit him with allowing two catches and 29 yards.

To each their own.

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Sauce Gardner continues to stand on business in Jets’ 24-3 Patriots win

Sauce Gardner continues to stand on business in Jets’ 24-3 Patriots win

New York Jets defensive back Sauce Gardner intimidates opposing NFL quarterbacks by playing terrific man coverage. Gardner’s impact singlehandedly allows defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich to blitz at will.



New England Patriots quarterback Jacoby Brissett only attempted 18 passes versus the Jets and he didn’t target the wide receiver covered by Gardner often. Brissett’s reluctance, a factor influenced by Gardner, helped lead to sacks by Will McDonald IV, safety Chuck Clark, and Quinnen Williams.

Wide receivers are hardly ever open when Gardner is in coverage and quarterbacks simply aren’t willing to take the risk of throwing in his vicinity.


When Gardner isn’t in coverage, he’s mixing it up, preventing first-downs by making physical open-field tackles, another facet of his defensive prowess.

For Gardner, it isn’t always about making the highlight reel, but about making it difficult for the opposing offense to move the ball, and more importantly, getting off the field on third-downs.

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Sauce Gardner and the Jets didn’t allow a passing TD in loss to 49ers

In spite of the criticism, Sauce Gardner and the New York Jets defense did not allow the 49ers a passing touchdown in their week 1 loss.

The San Francisco 49ers seemingly dominated the New York Jets defense in week 1, but some key stats indicate that defensive back Sauce Gardner and company actually held their ground.

Gardner and the Jets’ defense were asked to defend the powerhouse 49ers’ offense for a total of 70 plays and yet they only surrendered two touchdowns on Monday night. Neither of those touchdowns came through the air.

The 49ers were forced to kick six field-goals after sustaining drives into plus territory. This means that despite obvious fatigue, the Jets’ defense was unwilling to allow the 49ers into the end-zone more than once in each half.

49ers quarterback Brock Purdy completed just 65.5 percent of his 29 pass attempts and the Niners relied heavily (38 rushing attempts) on the ground attack to dictate the game.

Sure, analysts will criticize Gardner for taking a voluntarily gatorade break on the team sideline in the 2nd quarter. Yet, those same analysis subjectively disregard the fact that the Jets’ defense spent an inhumane 40 total plays on the field in just the first half. A half in which they surrendered just 16 points.

If and when Jets’ offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett deploys a scheme to sustain drives and get scores, fans will have a fresh rested Jets’ defense to assess. However, it is beyond unrealistic to expect defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich’s defense not to miss tackles when they’ve been on the field the entire game.