Jets fans have mixed feelings about trading away stars Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams
Farmingdale's Tom Wilson with his wife Tara Wilson and his daughters Mikayla and Madison at MetLife Stadium. Credit: Tom Wilson
Jets general manager Darren Mougey insisted that the team trading Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams on Tuesday was not a “tear-down.”
Two of the Jets’ defensive cornerstones are gone, but the return was significant.
In a shocker, the Colts acquired Gardner, a two-time All-Pro cornerback, for first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 and receiver Adonai Mitchell, a 2024 second-rounder. The Cowboys added Williams, a 2022 first-team All-Pro tackle, and sent the Jets a 2026 second-rounder, a 2027 first-rounder and defensive tackle Mazi Smith, a 2023 first-round selection.
How do Jets fans feel about it? It’s complicated.
“I don't know what to feel,” said Dennis Pluth, 52, of Center Moriches. “I feel like I'm just in an abusive relationship here that's never getting better. I’m sort of torn. There’s a part of me, and it's like, you know what, take the picks. But then it's like, no, this is what we do all the time. We are in a perpetual rebuild.”
“From a football standpoint and the way everything is, it's a good move,” said lifelong season-ticket holder Tom Wilson, 45, of Massapequa Park. “Granted, losing Sauce and Quinnen, it was just really tough. Two of the best defensive players on the team, [best] players on the team in general.
“The problem is, we get all these draft picks, but we’re the Jets. That's the only problem. I like [coach Aaron] Glenn. I like some of the moves they're doing. These are good football moves, but I'm very skeptical when it comes to the Jets and young players, especially if they're going to go after a quarterback, because we've just destroyed young quarterbacks pretty much in our entire existence.”
Andrew Budris, 51, of Moriches, is a former season-ticket holder who gave up his tickets about 10 years ago. He sees the Jets’ situation as “the definition of insanity,” with the current system constantly cycling out both players and coaches.
“When I look at someone like Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams, those kinds of players are hard to find and develop,” he said. “And when they finally do that, if they trade them away, all I just expect is these picks that they got are going to be future Sauce Gardners and Quinnen Williamses. They're going to come in. They're going to be good enough to be impressive, and they're just going to be part of another reset in about three or four years.”
The Jets (1-7) are in contention for the No. 1 overall pick as their playoff drought likely will reach 15 seasons.
Gardner became the league’s highest-paid cornerback in July, when he inked a four-year, $120.4 million extension with the franchise. Williams signed a four-year, $96 million extension in 2023.
“They're giving people false hope,” said Erin Molloy, 43, of Hampton Bays. “With football, you don't become a frontrunner, out of pride. You stick with your team through thick and thin. They're making that impossible now.”
Some fans feel slighted by the trades.
“It says we aren't doing anything this year or anytime soon, so get used to it,” said Chris Rose, 43, of Garden City. “And maybe become a Bills fan.”
Said Pluth: “I just don't have a lot of hope for this franchise. I think you can't just give up completely, especially with the prices they charge to get into that stadium and parking. How do you just trade away everything and say, ‘Oh, yeah, we're doing this again.’ I don't think they're thinking about the fans. I really don't.”
Others are more positive.
“We've been rebuilding since 2009, 2010, so I would just say hang in there,” said Chris Colace, 18, of Franklin Square. “I think I have faith in Aaron Glenn and our new GM, and I think our future is looking bright for the next five years.”
Chuck Apelian, 74, of Flushing, was a season-ticket holder for 48 years. Last season was his final one before giving them up. He cited a few reasons, including his feeling that “the organization doesn't appreciate the fan base.” The Jets also kept raising prices for season tickets each year.
But he thinks that the trades showed that the new regime is trying.
“I think they’re great,” Apelian said. “They got a lot of capital. The problem is: do they know what to do with it? That’s always been a problem.”
Glenn, a key cog as a player in the Jets’ 1990s turnaround under Bill Parcells, was asked Wednesday how fans should feel given the team’s record, the increase in ticket prices and two of their favorite players being traded.
“I want this to be a team the fans are proud of,” he said. “But again, I never said that they would be proud of them right now. At some point I want this to be a team the fans are proud of and I still stick with that. I will still say that. This is a team that the fans will be proud of.”
With Tom Rock
Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
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