NY Jets Week 3 Rookie Stock Report: Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson soar

The NY Jets once again had a disappointing performance following a win, a narrative that Jets fans have become accustomed to at this point. At this point, the frustration boils down to how the team loses just as much as the actual loss itself.

One of the most surprising aspects of the Jets' problems right now is that key veterans that have been added to the roster through free agency over the past couple of years are the players that are making the most mistakes.

On the flip side, the rookies and young players taken in the draft over the same amount of time are the main reasons why the team isn't getting fully embarrassed on Sundays.

Contrary to what many thought heading into the season, it appears that this rookie class won't need much of an adjustment to the NFL as they are top performers within their respective position groups.

Since there were so many solid performances from the rookies in Week 3, it is most fitting to say how much of a percent their stock has gone up Week-over-Week (WoW).

A Jets legend on Twitter gave a cool look at some top plays from the first four picks of the 2022 NFL Draft below, one of the few encouraging signs from an otherwise pitiful effort.

Stock up 30% WoW:  Sauce Gardner, CB, NY Jets ($SAUCE)

• Stats: 4 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 passes defended, 100% snap count

This guy is so much fun to watch. After years of horrendous play at cornerback, it's a breath of fresh air to watch someone like Sauce Gardner (that D.J. Reed guy is pretty good too).

Seeing No. 1 Sauce Gardner line up across No. 1 Ja'Marr Chase was awesome. Gardner made a special play against last season's Offensive Rookie of the Year at the end of the first quarter. He seemed to also be getting in Chase's head a bit early on.

It's evident that Gardner has CB1 potential. The only reason his stock didn't go up much higher is that he had a repeat from Week 2 where miscommunication between him and Lamarcus Joyner led to an easy touchdown for the opposition.

It's hard to tell exactly who the blame is on for these scenarios without understanding the play call and who is being told what, but Gardner must clean this up (with some help from less complicated play calling perhaps).

Stock up 17% WoW: Garrett Wilson, WR, NY Jets ($GDUB)

• Stats: 11 targets, 6 receptions for 60 yards, 63% snap count

Wilson had a solid outing to follow up his breakout performance in Week 2 considering he got injured in the second quarter. He came back in the second half but could have easily been affected by a tough shot to the midsection.

When people discuss an MVP award for any type of sport, they always say "if you took them off the team then what would happen?" Once Wilson was off the field, the dynamic on offense completely changed in a bad way.

It is a bit surprising that the potential for the offense is already dependent on a rookie wide receiver. For that reason, his stock must go up even if by the stat line, it seems like a fairly average performance.

The other thing worth noting is that this is the second week in a row that Wilson has had to be evaluated for an injury in the middle of a game.

While a lot of injuries have to do with bad luck, it was a factor in evaluating Wilson out of college. He has a lighter build for a receiver, and while his acrobatic catches are awesome to see, it does put him in a compromised position at times landing awkwardly such as what happened in Week 2.

This time around, Joe Flacco threw a hospital pass over the middle of the field and Wilson got crushed as result. This hopefully will not be happening with Zach Wilson coming back.

Stock up 20% WoW: Breece Hall, RB, NY Jets ($BREECE)

• Stats: 8 rushes for 39 yards, 6 receptions for 53 yards, 51% snap count

Week 3 was the one where Breece Hall finally got the majority of snaps over fellow running back Michael Carter (just by a hair at a 51-49% split).

Hall was the beneficiary of a lot of check downs from Joe Flacco who was often times panicked about the possibility of getting hit. Ideally, Hall will not be receiving 11 targets per game unless it's part of a specific game plan to take advantage of matchups.

While both running backs have been solid for the Jets through three weeks, Hall has had a better yards per carry over the past two games and is being integrated more and more into the offense.

It feels like Hall is inching closer toward being the 1A option while Carter will still play a prominent role. It is somewhat surprising that Hall has seen so many targets so early considering Carter's pass-catching ability.

The next step for the rookie out of Iowa State will be to make some game-changing plays with big runs. He is surely capable of it and it's easy to see flashes, but he hasn't ripped one just yet.

It would surely help if he could do so this week against Pittsburgh to ease Wilson's return and mitigate some worries of the offensive line by establishing and maintaining an explosive run game.

Stock up 50% WoW: Max Mitchell, OT, NY Jets ($MM)

• Stats: 2 pressures allowed, 100% snap count

It's really tough to deny how well fourth-rounder Max Mitchell has held his own through his first three weeks in the NFL. A lot has been asked of him and to this point, albeit with some minor bumps in the road, he has been a stabling presence in an otherwise shaky unit.

Against the Bengals, he probably has his best showing thus far, meanwhile, George Fant and Conor McDermott were getting destroyed by Trey Hendrickson and others.

Mitchell has arguably been the best offensive lineman for the Jets (although Alijah Vera-Tucker likely has that claim). To be able to be in that conversation nonetheless says plenty about Mitchell as well as about the state of the rest of the offensive line.

The Jets will need to hope that this streak of solid play continues with the mess that they are dealing with at the left tackle position. If there happens to be regression from Mitchell, this team will be in a lot of trouble trying to protect their hopeful franchise quarterback.

Stock up 15% WoW: Jermaine Johnson, DE, NY Jets ($JJ) & Micheal Clemons, DE, NY Jets ($DEEBO)

• Stats: 4 tackles, 1 TFL, 29% snap count ($JJ) 3 tackles, 1 TFL, 28% snap count ($DEEBO)

Both Jermaine Johnson and Micheal Clemons had solid performances given their limited time on the field in Week 3. For what it's worth, they were the two top-graded rookie edge rushers according to Pro Football Focus.

Johnson has made a noticeable difference in the run game when he has been on the field. It would be a boon to the defensive line if one or both of these rookies could get to the quarterback more often as that is the missing part of the equation on defense right now.

Ideally, we see the snap counts for both Johnson and Clemons on the rise as the season progresses, although there appears to be a bit of stubbornness from the coaches when it comes to snap counts for their defensive lineman.

Flat WoW: Jeremy Ruckert, TE, NY Jets ($LIJR) - 0% snap count