As the Jets gear up for the 2024 NFL season, The Athletic surveyed coaches and league executives to compile the list of the top 25 players 25 years old or younger. The list featured two Jets – CB Sauce Gardner and WR Garrett Wilson.
Gardner, the first cornerback in NFL history to earn consecutive first-team All-Pro selections beginning an NFL career, came in at No. 13 overall and as the No. 4 defender. At 23 years old (born Aug. 31, 2000), Gardner is the fifth-youngest player in the top 15 and 11th youngest overall.
After leading the NFL in pass defenses (20) as a rookie, the 2022 Defensive Rookie of the Year, was targeted 31 fewer times (55) and registered 11 pass defenses.
"Some of the great players in this league, people just avoid them," defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich said. "Those players can get bored. I haven't felt that from Sauce, to tell you the truth. He likes to talk, he's always got great energy, he's always engaged. I haven't seen that. But it's something that could happen to a guy like him when people avoid him at all costs."
In 583 coverage snaps last season, Gardner, the No. 4 overall pick in 2022, allowed 31 completions for 251 yards (0.4 yards allowed per coverage snap) and received the top coverage grade at his position (90.8) by Pro Football Focus.
"Some critics question Gardner's chops because the Jets play zone coverage so often," according to staff writer Mike Jones. "But Gardner is still a fantastic cover man, with 31 pass breakups the last two seasons combined. He has earned Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro honors in each of his first two NFL seasons."
Wilson came in at No. 21 in the under-25 rankings and the No. 6 wideout despite playing with an inconsistent cast of signal callers over the last two seasons. In 2022, Wilson won Offensive Rookie of the Year racking up a rookie season franchise record 1,103 yards receiving. Wilson followed that up with a career-high 95 receptions for 1,042 yards and 3 touchdowns last season.
"Wilson owns a pair of greats seasons despite the Jets' well-documented quarterback woes, so what might he accomplish with a healthy Aaron Rodgers throwing to him?" Jones wrote. "The Jets hope to quickly find out. Talent evaluators around the league predict Wilson will make another big leap forward in 2024 and join the ranks of the elite young wide receivers."
Despite becoming the first Jets wideout with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons since Keyshawn Johnson in 1998-99, Wilson is focused on improving across several fronts heading into the 2024 season.
"I had to find a way to attack the spring and summer in a different way every day," Wilson said during training camp. "Find the beauty in the work and make sure you're attacking it. It can get repetitive, and you just have to always be finding something to attack. With my offseason, I want to improve on things I am not good at and that took a lot of different shapes."
