Jets fans can see Cowboys' Joey Porter Jr. trade flopping from a mile away

The New York Jets saw Sauce Gardner turn into an undisputed All-Pro cornerback under their watch, but when it became clear that this version of a Sauce-led defense was not going to turn this team into a winner, they found a buyer for his services in the Indianapolis Colts.

The Dallas Cowboys saw what the Colts did and thought that the only issue with what Indianapolis did was paying too hefty a price. Rather than giving up a player of Adonai Mitchell's caliber and two first-round picks, the Cowboys sent a 2028 second-round pick and 2027 sixth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for cornerback Joey Porter Jr.

While the impact of Porter, who needs a new contract extension after the trade, is sure to improve the Cowboys' secondary, Jets fans have seen that bringing in a big-name cornerback and paying overmarket prices for said player is not the quick fix that Dallas and Indianapolis seem to believe it is.

New York Jets fans may see Cowboys' Joey Porter Jr. trade aging poorly after Sauce Gardner deal

The Colts miscalculated how close they were to contention when they added Gardner, so much so that they failed to make the playoffs after the trade. Gardner won only his first game in America in almost two seasons, in Week 3, as the Colts beat the Houston Texans following an 0-2 start.

It's one step below settled law that in the modern NFL, adding one superstar cornerback is not going to be enough to elevate a defense unless it comes in tandem with some other shrewd moves. Gardner has been his usual excellent self for the Colts, as he was with the Jets, but he has failed to be the lone force multiplier many expected.

The Cowboys' defense may be the latest to overpay an outside cornerback without very good ball skills, with the thought that he will be enough to take a bad unit and fix it. The NFL seems to be shifting toward depth over star power in the secondary, where four lesser players can combine to do the work of one superstar.

The New York Jets are still benefitting from the Sauce Gardner trade

The Jets seem to have angled towards that more modern approach to roster building on defense. The Jets have two very talented youngsters in Azareye'h Thomas and D'Angelo Ponds on rookie deals, and the improved Brandon Stephens is getting paid well below market value for a No. 1 cornerback. Even Minkah Fitzpatrick's contract is far from exhaustive.

Porter is not only going to cost more than Gardner for a Cowboys team that is already up against the wall financially, but he won't have the same level of impact on their defense. If only the Cowboys had taken a look at how New York and Indianapolis are trending before this deal.

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