Boomer Esiason implores Sauce Gardner to ‘put the damn phone down’

Sauce Gardner can’t help himself.

The New York Jets All-Pro cornerback who’s enjoying his career-worst season through 10 games can’t not go on social media. And Gardner’s career-worst season isn’t actually bad. He’s been quite good, but he hasn’t been the lockdown corner that the Jets have grown accustomed to, and his tackling — as does the whole team’s — leaves a lot to be desired.

But Gardner has now had to remove social media apps from his phone on multiple occasions this season. After a 31-6 loss to the Arizona Cardinals, he quoted (and later deleted) a tweet from Jets beat reporter Rich Cimini. The post attributed Gardner’s missed tackle as the costliest miss, which the 24-year-old took issue with.

Gardner had Cardinals tight end Trey McBride wrapped up until he didn’t. Down 14-6, the Jets look primed to get off the field on a third down. All Gardner had to do was tackle McBride. He did not. The Cardinals would later score a touchdown on their third consecutive offensive drive. And that was that.

Regardless of the framing, Gardner was on X (formerly Twitter) in the immediate aftermath, trying to absolve himself of blame. He later had another deleted reply, as well as a leaked interaction with a fan. Needless to say, it wasn’t a great look for the third-year pro out of Cincinnati.

While I’ve already suggested what Gardner should do with his phone, Boomer Esiason had some more poignant advice. Esiason has accused Aaron Rodgers of sucking all of the air out of the building at One Jets Drive. He’s also made some phone calls to learn that Jon Gruden will “definitely” be back in the NFL in some capacity.

But now he’s imploring Gardner to do anything but pick up his phone.

“My advice to Sauce Gardner is to put the damn phone down. Put it down!” Esiason said via Fox News Digital. “The last two years, everyone is talking about how you’re the best player at your position. So it was two years of adulation and how great you are. All of a sudden, you have a couple bad games and miss some tackles, people go after you, and you want to start fighting people?”

“Stop defending and just play ball, man,” Esiason added. “I wish he would just put it down, and this offseason, just work on his golf game.”

That latter half has been a point of contention with Jets fans, who have noticed a dip in Gardner’s production because of his offseason activities. That’s not to say that Gardner’s not allowed to do things for his personal enjoyment, like golf or stream, but he’s clearly taken a step back in 2024.

Granted, that also could be a reflection on Gang Green’s defense itself, which has struggled to get much — if any — push upfront, as well as some very poor safety play in the backend.

Regardless, Esiason’s comments point to a disconnect. He suggests that the Jets take a school teacher-like approach to their star cornerback. Of course, this is the same organization working on the fundamentals of tackling in Week 11, so anything goes.

“If I were a coach, I would want to be like a school teacher and say, ‘Hey guys, can we put the phones in our caddies until after the game, and can we focus?'” said Esiason.

At 3-7, this is where the Jets are at. But Gardner shouldn’t look to his quarterback for advice. Aaron Rodgers can’t help himself, either.

[Boomer & Gio]