The New York Jets beat the Miami Dolphins 32-20 in Week 18 to finish the season 5-12. As the team packed up after missing the playoffs again, the conversation turned to the future of the organization. Sauce Gardner is a cornerstone piece of the Jets who had a rough year but is eligible for an extension this offseason. He told Rich Cimini of ESPN what his plans are for the future.

“I want to be part of this for a long time. I want to be part of the change in this organization,” Gardner told Cimini. “Smiling, he adds, ‘If I was to go somewhere else and then there was a change, I'd be a hater, for real. I'd be the No. 1 hater.'”

It should be good news for the Jets that their franchise cornerback wants to stay with the team. He won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2022 and was the first-team All-Pro corner that year as well. While this was not his best season, he has shown flashes of being a great cornerback.

This quote is also a very different tone than what his fellow corner DJ Reed took just a few weeks ago. Before the final game of the season. Reed said he was ready to test free agency after this season.

Should the Jets extend Sauce Gardner? 

New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner (1) celebrates after an interception against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fourth quarter at EverBank Stadium.
Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Jets finally had a glimmer of hope after their stellar 2022 draft. Gardner, Garrett Wilson, and Jermaine Johnson II were all taken in the first round and had solid rookie seasons. That team had no expectations and went 7-10 with a real chance to make the playoffs with two weeks to play. That class can help them bridge the gap from this bad season to a competitive campaign.

But cornerbacks can be expensive, especially top-of-the-market ones which is what Gardner will demand. The highest cap hit for a corner in the league is Jaire Alexander at over $23 million. But Reed is getting paid $15 million, so they are freeing up money to use on Gardner in the immediate future.

The Jets have plenty of questions this offseason so Gardner's desire to stay in New York is huge. His 2022 draft classmate Garrett Wilson has not said that. Cimini noted in the same post that the wide receiver was not available to the media on clean-out day. That is all the more reason to get the Gardner extension done and try to work things out with Wilson.