On Super Bowl’s media row this week on PFT Live, Indianapolis Colts cornerback Sauce Gardner shared a learning lesson regarding being a tad late to a training session, which drew his new head coach Shane Steichen’s ire—after just arriving a few weeks earlier from the New York Jets in a blockbuster NFL trade deadline deal:
Specifically, Gardner injured his calf early in the first quarter of the Colts’ Week 13th home game against the Houston Texans this past November 30th. He had been with Indianapolis around three weeks at that point.
However, when he showed up to the team’s training room at 7:02 AM thereafter, instead of the scheduled 7:00 AM time, head coach Shane Steichen saw him, casually greeted him, but then during the team meeting after that training session, had Gardner address the whole team regarding his slight tardiness.
It was Steichen’s way of holding Gardner, who instantly became one of the defense’s best players and had just been recently acquired from the Big Apple, accountable in his newfound Colts locker room with all fresh faces. The same standard of accountability applied to Gardner, just like for any of his other Colts teammates.
The Colts paid a big price to acquire Gardner just ahead of this past year’s trade deadline, dealing their 2026 and 2027 first round picks along with 2nd-year wide receiver AD Mitchell to the Jets.
Because of a lingering calf injury, Gardner’s initial Colts debut didn’t go quite as planned, finishing with 16 tackles (13 solo) and 3 passes defensed during his first 4 starts in Indianapolis.
With his calf strain injury, along with other critical ones to Daniel Jones, DeForest Buckner, and Charvarius Ward among others, the Colts went just 1-6 during Gardner’s initial tenure and missed the playoffs, after another disappointing late season collapse in Indianapolis.
However, when fully healthy, Gardner looked very much the part of a lockdown NFL #1 cornerback. With a full offseason in veteran defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo’s system and better familiarity with his Colts defensive teammates, Sauce should be much more comfortable (and healthy!) headed into the 2026 campaign.
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