Everybody around the league knew the Indianapolis Colts’ front office had been working the phones hard, looking to land a big name on defense. They pulled it off right before the trade deadline, landing cornerback Sauce Gardner from the New York Jets, adding more firepower to an already solid unit.

And quarterback Daniel Jones didn’t bother hiding his excitement when asked about it.

“I think it’s huge for us to have a guy like that who’s played at a high level in the league for a few years now. Really, really excited to add him, and I think he’ll help everybody,” he remarked.

It’s hard to argue with that; having a two-time All-Pro can’t go too wrong. Drafted in 2022, he wasted no time establishing himself as one of the NFL’s premier shutdown corners. He won Defensive Rookie of the Year, made first-team All-Pro as a rookie, and followed that up with another All-Pro nod the next season.

Sure, this year has been rough. Through seven games, he’s logged 20 tackles and six pass breakups, and hasn’t been on the winning side once. Still, nobody who’s watched him play believes he suddenly forgot how to cover. Sometimes, a change of scenery is exactly what a good player on a bad team needs.

In Indianapolis, Sauce Gardner steps into a much more stable situation. He’ll line up opposite Charvarius Ward, another All-Pro, with Kenny Moore II, a 2021 Pro Bowler, handling the slot. That trio gives the Colts one of the deepest cornerback groups in football. Add that to an offense that’s been among the best in the league, and it’s no wonder the Blue Crew is exuberant.

What’s interesting, though, is how both sides can feel good about this deal in their own way. From a football standpoint, the Colts might’ve found themselves a bargain. But if you look at it on paper, the Jets could make the case that they came out ahead.

Jets’ genius $120M contract play

The Jets might be the worst team in the league this season, but GM Darren Mougey definitely outplayed Colts GM Chris Ballard on paper. Just five months after inking Sauce Gardner to a four-year, $120.4 million extension, the Jets moved him, and somehow managed to make the numbers work in their favor.

His signing bonus was modest by star-corner standards, about $13.75 million, which now sits on the Jets’ cap as dead money. But the heavy guarantees in his contract come through option bonuses down the road, and those will now fall on Indianapolis.

So while the Jets eat a small cap hit this year, the Colts take on most of the financial weight moving forward.

Also, New York walks away with two first-round picks (in 2026 and 2027) and young wideout Adonai Mitchell. For a team that’s 1–7 and stuck at the bottom of the AFC East, this is exactly the kind of move they needed to make. It’s not about the present anymore. It’s all about how they shape themselves for the years ahead.

The next two drafts will define what this franchise looks like in three years. Between the Colts’ first-rounders, a 2026 second-round pick, and that 2027 first-rounder they got from Dallas in the Quinnen Williams trade, the Jets have stockpiled serious draft capital. Hopefully, they get it right.