While Aaron Rodgers has yet to play in his first game for the Jets, it has not stopped the four-time NFL MVP from raving about the young talent around him in wide receiver Garrett Wilson and cornerback Sauce Gardner.
Wilson and Gardner, products of the 2022 NFL draft class, made significant impacts during their rookie seasons as Wilson earned the league’s 2022 Offensive Rookie of the Year and Gardner was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. As the two head into their sophomore seasons, Rodgers shared glowing comments about the future of the franchise’s duo.
“We’ve got, at some point possibly, the best corner and the best receiver in the NFL,” Rodgers said, per the New York Post. “It’s a legit possibility for those two guys. Maybe not this upcoming year—I still think Davante [Adams] is in a league of his own—but those two kids are so talented.”
Gardner and Wilson became the third set of NFL teammates in league history to sweep Rookie of the Year honors. Despite the Jets woes at quarterback in ’22, Wilson finished with 83 receptions for 1,103 yards and four touchdowns. Gardner led the league in defended passes (20) and registered two interceptions.
While Wilson remains a long way from catching up to the Rodgers-Adams tandem in Green Bay—624 receptions for 7,649 yards and 68 touchdowns in 108 games—and Gardner seeks to build on a great rookie year, Rodgers clearly believes the future for Wilson and Gardner in New York is great.
“How we take the next step is to talk about the things that give us the most issues,” Rodgers said, per the Post. “To talk about release issues [caused by Gardner] and what’s hard on Garrett, and then Sauce telling Garrett what’s hard on him. I think right now, we have good communication with those guys. They battle, they compete.”
