Getty New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner stirred up some QB hype on social media.
New York Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner decided to stir the pot on social media a bit this afternoon on February 3 when he tweeted at two big-name quarterbacks that many expect to be available this offseason.
The first tweet read: “Aye @AaronRodgers12 ? [Nevermind], I forgot what I was about to say.” At the time of my screenshot, this not-so-subtle message to Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers had over 267,000 views, 1,000-plus retweets/quote tweets, and nearly 6,200 likes.
Twitter/@iamSauceGardnerA deleted tweet from New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner at Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Shortly after, Gardner sent out another message that immediately went viral as well. “Aye @D7_Reed , you & @derekcarrqb might have to talk about that one thing,” the second tweet read. It was not posted for anywhere close to the same duration of the Rodgers tweet, but had nearly 8,300 views, 50-plus retweets/quote tweets, and nearly 400 likes at the time of my screenshot.
Twitter/@iamSauceGardnerA deleted tweet from New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner at teammate D.J. Reed Jr. and Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr.
After momentarily breaking Jets Twitter, Gardner promptly deleted both tweets and sent out a third that stated: “I was trollin y’all. Relax😂.”
Jets’ Sauce Gardner Joins DJ Reed Jr. in Recruiting QBs — Derek Carr & Aaron Rodgers
Earlier this week, Jets teammate D.J. Reed Jr. sent a public message to Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, so it’s not the first time an NYJ player has gotten a little presumptuous with the Twitter fingers.
In the social media age, you don’t send out stuff like this without knowing that fans are going to pick it up and run with it. Not only have the Jets been linked to both Rodgers and Carr this winter, but the latter is currently in the same city as Gardner.
Keep in mind, the defensive rookie of the year candidate was tweeting all of this live from Las Vegas — where other Pro Bowlers like Carr are hanging out within walking distance. Who knows, the two could even be together as we speak.
Rodgers is not in Las Vegas this weekend. Instead, he’s partaking in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament, but that hasn’t stopped any of the speculation.
The other day, wide receiver Garrett Wilson even posted a photo of an arcade game Rodgers caricature in a green and white jersey on his Instagram story, captioning it: “Issa sign.”
Garrett Wilson on his Instagram Story 😂👀 (IG/ ttwf.o)
Who knows if all of this social media hype is helping or hurting the Jets’ chances of landing a QB like Rodgers or Carr, but most fans are loving it either way. One thing’s for sure, the NYJ locker room is very aware of the quarterback speculation surrounding this team, and it appears as if they’re deliberately choosing to get involved in it.
Raiders’ Derek Carr Is Not a Good ‘Plan B’ to Packers’ Aaron Rodgers in Jets QB Hunt
Jets X-Factor film analyst Joe Blewett discussed the idea of Carr serving as a backup plan to Rodgers on February 3, concluding that it’s probably not a feasible option.
He explained: “Based on the timeline it’s highly unlikely Carr could be a ‘plan b.’ If the Jets go all in for Rodgers and miss, Carr will most likely be gone as well. If Rodgers is ‘plan A’, they better not miss. Which is why Carr is my #1 [option].”
In other words, because of their conflicting timelines, the Jets may have to focus on a pursuit of either Rodgers or Carr — not both.
Jets X-Factor colleague Michael Nania agreed with Blewett’s assessment, adding: “This is where I’m at [too]. If you’re not 100% sold that Rodgers is coming (which it’s hard to be without getting to talk directly to him, which technically they aren’t allowed to do), you have to go get Carr. Going for Rodgers and missing on both him and Carr is a nightmare scenario.”
Gardner may not care which big-name QB the Jets target in 2023, but general manager Joe Douglas and head coach Robert Saleh could be forced to choose one or the other.