Even before his college days, cornerback Ahmad Gardner earned the nickname “Sauce”. With the New York Jets, the rookie must first deliver on the field before being called that by his teammates.

Munich/New York – The trademark of rookie cornerback Ahmad Gardner is his nickname “Sauce”. For the 2022 NFL Draft, for example, he appeared with a silver chain including the lettering around his neck.

With the New York Jets, however, he first has to earn the name, as linebacker C. J. Mosley tells the “NFL Network” in an interview.

“We told him that we might call him that if he manages two pick sixes in the preseason,” reports the 30-year-old. According to the report, however, he would have to do that against number one receivers and not the “number two, three or backups. “

New York Jets: Head Coach Saleh fond of Gardner

Should that not work out for the fourth pick in last year’s talent draft, however, it’s far from the end of his nickname. “Most likely we’ll start calling him ‘Sauce’ if he puts up a big play in the regular season,” Mosley posits.

According to head coach Robert Saleh, that is likely to happen sooner or later. “He has the mindset and is very confident. I’ve rarely seen so much trash talk from a rookie,” the 43-year-old is quoted as saying by “CBS Sports”. The 21-year-old still has a “long way to go” but is eager to learn and “like a sponge that soaks up everything”.

So it shouldn’t be too long before Ahmad Gardner is also called “Sauce” in the Big Apple. The first opportunity will come in his team’s preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles next week.