Jets' Sauce Gardner on Bears' Top-10 Picks in 2024 NFL Draft: 'Who Did They Fleece?'
April 17, 2024
As the 2024 NFL draft quickly approaches, the Chicago Bears are sitting pretty with two picks in the top 10. However, at least one player is wondering how they achieved such a luxury.
New York Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner took to social media to question how the Bears landed two top-10 picks, asking in a since-deleted post on X, "Who did they fleece?"
Gardner followed up that since-deleted post with:
It appears that Gardner was unaware of the 2023 blockbuster trade between the Bears and Carolina Panthers. In that deal, Carolina sent star receiver DJ Moore and this year's first-round pick to Chicago to swap the No. 9 pick for the No. 1 pick last year and select Alabama quarterback Bryce Young. A disastrous season by the Panthers granted the Bears the No. 1 pick in this year's draft in addition to their own pick, which landed at No. 9.
Chicago's second of its two top-10 picks will have direct ramifications on New York. The Jets own the No. 10 pick, so the decision that the Bears make at No. 9 would impact the draft strategy for Jets general manager Joe Douglas and company.
New York has enjoyed a solid offseason so far in which multiple roster holes have been filled. In particular, the team landed a pair of veteran offensive tackles by signing former Dallas Cowboys left tackle Tyron Smith and trading for Baltimore Ravens right tackle Morgan Moses. Those moves provided the Jets with some flexibility with the No. 10 pick, as they are no longer locked into having to take an offensive lineman.
Of course, Smith and Moses bring injury concerns due to the amount of tread they've accumulated throughout their careers, so picking an offensive tackle out of a talented class of prospects is not off the table for New York. However, the Jets will likely be hoping to add a playmaker who can make an immediate impact with star quarterback Aaron Rodgers making his return from a torn Achilles.
B/R's NFL Scouting Department predicted in its latest mock draft that the Jets would select Georgia star tight end Brock Bowers with the No. 10 pick.