The New York Jets know they struck gold in the 2022 NFL Draft. The rest of the league apparently agrees.
On NFL Honors Night both Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson took home Defensive and Offensive Rookie of the Year awards respectively Thursday evening.
While Gardner took home the Defensive Rookie of the Year award, another finalist, Aidan Hutchinson, was named Pepsi Zero Rookie of the Year. Hutchinson led all rookies with 9.5 sacks this season and became the first rookie since 1982, when the individual sack became an official statistic, with at least nine sacks and three interceptions.
Even with the generic snub, Gardner adds his defensive award to a long list of accomplishments in his first season. He was the first rookie corner to be named a first-team All-Pro since Ronnie Lott in 1981 and led the league in passes defensed. He was also awarded the PFWA Rookie of the Year award amongst all rookies. Gardner received 46 of the 50 votes for the award with Aidan Hutchinson finishing in second.
Wilson, on the other hand, set the Jets’ franchise receiving records in yards and catches. The former Ohio State product caught passes from three different quarterbacks but still took home the Offensive Rookie of the Year award over other finalists like Kenneth Walker III, and Brock Purdy.
It’s the third time in NFL history that two players from the same team have won offensive and defensive rookie of the year awards.
In one of the greatest rookie classes in recent history, the Jets have struck gold with the top players in this class.
