Seahawks Tariq Woolen or Jets Sauce Gardner: Who's better? We've got the answer.

This is a debate that will likely go on for decades after they retire. But why wait, when we can ask right now: who's better, the Seattle Seahawks' Tariq Woolen or the New York Jets' Sauce Gardner? Better yet, let's find the answer.

I know, I'm not the first to ask the question. As I wrote above, these two players are almost certainly going to be compared to each other throughout their careers. If they both play as well as they did as rookies, this is a debate that will be revisited long after they both get their gold jackets. That's right, 12s, I'll admit that Sauce Gardner showed he has what it takes to eventually make the Hall of Fame. Of course, Tariq Woolen is a lock for the Hall. All good 12s know that, right?

Okay, so both players are exceptional talents that will only get better. But who's the better player right now? When I began writing this, I was definitely in the camp of the Seahawks with Tariq the Freak. But the whole point of this was to take off my navy, gray, and action-green glasses and look at the two players as fairly as I could.

Seahawks' Woolen or Jets' Gardner? It's all in the numbers

I absolutely had no idea which of the two would come out on top. So back in the present tense, the result will be just as much of a surprise to me as it will to you. I mean, I'll be surprised if I decide that Gardner is the better corner. Hey, I'm trying to be fair, but I am a Hawks fan.

So let's take a look at the criteria for this momentous struggle. I could just say Tariq is better, repeat it a dozen times, and leave it at that. I don't believe that would make the most compelling argument outside of Seattle, though. Those of you who've read a few of my articles know what's coming. Yes, good 12s, it's time to get mathy.

My go-to site for numbers is always pro-football-reference.com. It's far from the only resource we'll be using, but it has all the basics and much more. The first thing I really like about it is that the site simply gives you the statistics you need to reach your own conclusions. The second is that there's no paywall, and that's exceedingly rare. As I wrote at the start, I'm not the first to ask the question. Hit your favorite search tool for "Woolen or Gardner", and you should get over 800,000 hits. We'll have to delve deeper into the numbers if we hope to reach a definitive answer, so we'll cast a wider net.

Before we get into the more esoteric stats, let's start with the basics. I won't play any guessing games here; we all know who had six picks last year, don't we? For the record, these stats are from my favorite stat site, pro-football-reference.com. This is only the beginning of exactly why it's so difficult to say who is the better player.

Based on these stats, I'd take Woolen. Yes, he gave up three touchdowns compared to Gardner's one. While they disrupted the same number of passes (22), Woolen put the ball in the hands of the Seahawks four more times than Gardner. Woolen gave up more yards per catch by a sizeable amount, 2.5 yards. However, that difference is entire due to Woolen being targeted on deeper routes. Average yards in the air for Woolen were 8.59; for Gardner, the average was just 6.02. Once the ball was caught, Woolen's average YAC allowed was 3.73, while Gardner's was 3.80. Both are excellent, but it's plain that Woolen surrendered more yards on average only because the opposition ran deeper routes against him.