The New York Jets took a head-scratching decision for Sauce Gardner. On Monday night football, on September 9, 2024, the Jets were playing their first game of the season against the San Francisco 49ers. Among multiple moments of the game, what caught recent attention and some serious heat was Sauce Gardner’s benching.

No, he wasn’t benched for the game or is not benched for the season! Jets head coach Robert Saleh “chose to keep Gardner on the sidelines for almost the entirety of the 49ers’ final drive of the first half.” But why? According to ESPN NFL reporter Rich Cimini on X, “Sauce Gardner was “just trying to catch his breath” on those nine plays he missed, per Saleh.”

The head coach revealed the reason behind him making Gardner “sidelined for part of the second quarter because he was trying to catch his breath. Gardner exited after he collided with Deebo Samuel’s knee while trying to make a tackle.” This made fans concerned of his possible shoulder or neck injury. However, the Jets team confirmed later that he was not sidelined due to an injury. And this excuse neither saved Gardner nor Saleh from public anguish, who straightaway said, “He’s a professional athlete, put him in the damn game,” or “Having watched many Saleh practices the past three years, it’s not surprising this team isn’t game ready.”

Now this controversy seems quite arguably justifiable, because it is definitely strange to hear that Gardner, who is arguably one of the best NFL cornerbacks, just came up in the action for the final two plays of the drive. His being sidelined just to catch a breath sounds off for many NFL fans, and hence it has resulted in controversy, as it wasn’t even a medical issue.

And probably, due to this mistake (among multiple setbacks), the Jets lost the game against last year’s Super Bowl runner-ups on Monday.

Sauce Gardner’s absence cost a lot to the Jets?

Sauce Gardner was on the sidelines for about nine plays, but he didn’t receive any medical attention. So, before he returned late in the first half, during his absence the Jets struggled defensively. The 49ers capitalized on the moment, scoring 9 unanswered points and extending their lead to 16-7. However, when he returned to the field just before halftime, the Niners reached the red zone. But still, because of his presence, the Jets’ defense stopped the 49ers from scoring a touchdown, forcing them to settle for a field goal instead.

Despite that, the Santa Carla team won against the Green Apple 32-19. And in the game, Sauce Gardner only managed to get one solo tackle, two assisted tackles, and one sack on Monday. Obviously, it’s frustrating for the man who looked powerless in front of the 49ers. In a post-game interview, Gardner exclaimed, “Obviously it’s frustrating [that they punted only once]. We’ve got to be a lot better, we’ve got a lot to clean up. It’s Week 1. We have a long season ahead of us.” This statement hints that Gardner is optimistic about the Jets’ future wins. But will they be able to? The type of game they showed today questions this for sure.

Now, heading into Week 2, the Jets are aiming for an even stronger performance against the Titans.