Projected APY: $31+ millionFree agent after: 2026
Gardner likely could not have been happier watching the cornerback market during the past year. In September, Jaire Alexander was the NFL’s highest-paid corner at $21 million per season. Eight months and four contracts later, the top of the market has ballooned to $30 million a year with Texans CB Derek Stingley Jr.’s three-year, $90 million extension. Stingley, the player selected one spot before Gardner went fourth overall in 2022, set the floor for Gardner in negotiations with the Jets.
Gardner put on for his name straight off the runway in his first season with the Jets, leading the NFL in passes defensed (20), earning first-team All-Pro honors and winning Defensive Rookie of the Year. He had another first-team All-Pro campaign in 2023, making Gardner the only defensive back in the Super Bowl era to be named first-team All-Pro in each of his first two seasons. A Hall of Famer and the league’s all-time interceptions leader, Paul Krause also accomplished the feat prior to the Super Bowl era.
Gardner’s 2024 season left something to be desired, but his overall body of work speaks for itself. In his first three NFL seasons, Gardner has allowed the lowest completion percentage (50.9), fewest receptions (87), second-fewest pass yards (1,003) and third-fewest touchdowns (three) in coverage among 62 cornerbacks with at least 150-plus targets, per PFF.
The Jets picked up Gardner’s fifth-year option this offseason, locking him in at $20.2 million for the 2026 season. It remains to be seen how they will approach Gardner’s contract. The team extended 2019 third overall pick Quinnen Williams the summer before his fifth season.Â