The Seattle Seahawks cornerback group hasn't been as good as hoped in 2026. Josh Jobe has been inconsistent but mostly bad. Imagine, if you will, a Seattle secondary that includes Julian Love, Devon Witherspoon, Nick Emmanwori, and Sauce Gardner. It could happen.
Gardner is currently a member of the Indianapolis Colts and has only been so since Indy traded for him midway through last season. Now-fired general manager Chris Ballard gave up too much for Gardner, and the package to the New York Jets included two first-round choices.
Should Seattle make an offer to Indy for the services of Gardner, which it should, the Seahawks wouldn't offer multiple first-round selections. One might be enough, though, and is something that the new Colts GM would need.
Seattle Seahawks should make a move for the Indianapolis Colts' Sauce Gardner
Is Gardner worth a first-round pick? Absolutely.
He is only 25 years old and would be a CB1 in head coach Mike Macdonald's defense for years. Gardner is highly paid, but he should be. Elite corners get paid loads of money.
Gardner is signed through 2030, and his cap hit increases to $20,953,473 in 2027 and up to $36.1 million in 2029 and 2030, but by that point, the NFL's cap ceiling will be higher, and Gardner's cap hit won't look as relatively large.
Though he is currently dealing with a left calf strain, he is only considered week-to-week and should return soon. His injury shouldn't be something that keeps a team from offering less than what Gardner is worth.
Through six games this season, Gardner has allowed nine completions on 17 targets, given up one touchdown pass, but broken up three passes. He's also whiffed on just 10.5 percent of his tackle attempts, a very good number for a defensive back, and hasn't missed on one in four games. In other words, he can help in run support as well as be elite in coverage.
His quarterback rating allowed is 113.6, but that is mostly due to one bad game. His Week 4 performance, when he allowed 104 yards receiving (the first time he had allowed 100 yards receiving in a single game), was arguably the worst game of his career, and no one should expect that to be Gardner's normal form.
In his five-year career, his quarterback rating allowed is a very low 74.2. Could he have more than three interceptions? Sure, but part of the issue is that he is so good in coverage; quarterbacks don't throw his way very often. He hasn't been targeted more than 51 times in a season since his rookie year.
Compare that to former Seattle Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen, who has been targeted at least 66 times in every season of his career. Woolen has also allowed 22 touchdowns and been penalized 40 times. Gardner has allowed six TDs and been penalized only 27 times.
The Colts likely shouldn't expect more than one first-round choice, or perhaps that and a third-round pick. The Seahawks are projected to have as many as 11 selections in 2027, and five of those come in the first three rounds.
Seattle has the draft capital to make a move for Gardner, who is more than worthy of having a first-round pick be part of any deal. He would immediately improve Mike Macdonald's secondary and arguably be the best cornerback the Seahawks have had since Richard Sherman.
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