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Sauce Gardner’s Contract Extension Ranks Him As the Highest Paid Cornerback in the League – How Useful Will He Be to the Jets in the 2025–26 Season?

Sauce Gardner is now at the top of the cornerback market

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The New York Jets are taking no chances when it comes to securing long-term deals with their top picks from the 2022 NFL draft. One day after securing wide receiver Garrett Wilson for another four years in the Big Apple, the Jets announced a similar deal for cornerback Sauce Gardner.

As per reports, the Jets have extended Gardner with a 4-year deal, earning him $120.4 million. This comes out to $30.1 million per year, and locks the lockdown corner to the team until 2030. The Jets have now, in back-to-back days, secured long-term deals for their number one receiver and cornerback, who are both from the 2022 NFL draft class.

🚨 🚨 🚨

The #Jets and All-Pro CB Sauce Gardner have agreed to terms on a massive new extension, making him the highest-paid CB in NFL history, per The Insiders.

It’s a 4-year, $120.4M deal — $30.1M per year — done by his team – agent @ajv and @allantegardner of @vaynersports. pic.twitter.com/T0Hfr9Pd0P
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 15, 2025

Where Does Gardner’s New Deal Rank Among All Cornerbacks?

Gardner’s new deal, which will see him earn $30.1 million per year, now ranks him as the highest-earning cornerback in the league, surpassing the $30 million per year mark set by the Texans’ corner Derek Stingley Jr.

The cornerback market has seen a steep increase over the past year. With the increasing salary cap year on year, all position groups have benefited greatly. And while the top wide receivers are all earning more than Gardner, the cornerbacks are not too far behind.

Last year, Broncos’ cornerback Pat Surtain II signed his rookie extension deal worth $96 million over 4 years, which comes out to $24 million average annually. He was later named the 2024 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, and he is now the fifth-highest-paid corner in the league behind Gardner, Stingley Jr., Jaycee Horn, and Jalen Ramsey.

Player	Contract	Average Annual Salary
Sauce Gardner	4 years, $120.4 million	$30.1 million
Derek Stingley Jr.	3 years, $90 million	$30 million
Jaycee Horn	4 years, $100 million	$25 million
Jalen Ramsey	3 years, $72.3 million	$24.1 million
Patrick Surtain II	4 years, $96 million	$24 million

Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II is now the 5th highest-paid cornerback in the NFL😳

Top 5 highest paid CBs:
🔶Sauce Gardner ($30.1M)
🔶Derek Stingley Jr. ($30M)
🔶Jaycee Horn ($25M)
🔶Jalen Ramsey ($24.1M)
🔶Pat Surtain II ($24M)

INSANE VALUE for the 2024 DPOY🤝 pic.twitter.com/K7iLKck7Cv
— Football Forever (@fballforeverhq) July 15, 2025

Why is Gardner considered one of the best at his position?

Without a question, the Jets’ number one cornerback is one of the best to play the game today. He is known for his excellent coverage skills and for allowing a limited number of receptions, even from his rookie season.

As per PFF’s grades, Gardner has a 91.9 PFF coverage grade, which ranks him at the top of his position since 2022. The 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year is a two-time Pro Bowler and a 2-time First Team All-Pro, who led the league with 20 pass deflections in 2022.

Looking ahead at the 2025 season, Gardner is expected to continue his role with the highest level of play. Considered a true lockdown corner, the 24-year-old has already improved the Jets’ defense, but it is the offense that has kept the team from enjoying more success.

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Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!