Sauce Gardner clarifies controversial comment urging Tee Higgins to avoid NY Jets

NY Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner spent the 2024 offseason on the recruiting trail in hopes of convincing star players around the NFL to join his team ahead of what many hoped would be a potential Super Bowl run.

It's safe to say Gardner's approach will be a bit different this time around. That's especially true as it pertains to Cincinnati Bengals star wide receiver Tee Higgins it seems.

Gardner responded to an Instagram post from Higgins on Saturday with a caption that read "PAY THIS MAN." The two-time All-Pro cornerback, who notably attended the University of Cincinnati, showed support for one of his former city's star players.

That's when things got interesting. A fan replied to Gardner asking him to tell Higgins to come to the Jets, prompting a curious response from the star cornerback. "I will NOT be telling him that," Gardner emphatically replied to the comment.

That's quite the difference from his approach a year ago when he publicly campaigned for his team to sign Higgins before the standout wide receiver was franchise-tagged by the Bengals.

Why does Sauce Gardner not want Tee Higgins on the NY Jets?

The initial comment from Gardner reads more as a warning shot than anything else. It comes across as Gardner giving his friend advice to avoid the Jets at all costs. But the former first-round pick attempted to explain his comment on social media the following day.

Gardner posted to his Instagram story on Sunday that he made his initial comment because the Jets already have Garrett Wilson and Davante Adams so there's "no chance of it happening." That was his rationale.

Whether Jets fans — or NFL fans — will believe that story is up to the individual. It certainly stands to reason that the Jets likely won't pursue Higgins this offseason, even if Adams expectedly leaves. But there were likely other ways for Gardner to make that point clear.

Or, you know, he could've just not responded to a random fan in the first place.

Gardner is in the midst of a "down" season by his standards. But while he likely isn't on the verge of earning his third consecutive first-team All-Pro selection, the 24-year-old has still put together an excellent season by the standard of most cornerbacks. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for his team.

The Jets were embarrassed yet again in Week 17, falling to their division rivals, the Buffalo Bills, by a final score of 40-14. They enter their season finale next week fighting for a potential top-five pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Gardner might decide to tone it done with the recruiting this offseason, and it's evident that Higgins won't be a target of his efforts this time around.

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