Sauce Gardner Using Golf to Take Next Step with Jets

The NFL can be as much of a mental game as it is a physical one. That's why many players look for different ways to stay grounded during and after the grueling season.

One player in particular has found peace and mental serenity in a different sporting event - one the public is all too familiar with.

New York Jets All-Pro cornerback made headlines before training camp as he picked up golf as a hobby of his to work on before real practices began. He became so popular that even some on the PGA Tour were noticing how good the Cincinnati product looked.

“He’s got some speed for one,” said Will Zalatoris while watching a clip of Gardner's golf game. “I mean, the dude’s an athlete, we know that. But I mean that’s pretty impressive. Clean up a little bit of the short game there and he’s going to be pretty good, pretty quick.”

Now that training camp has started for the Jets, Gardner can bring his focus back to the gridiron with a new outlook on life, and the game he's become so dominant in.

"It was just a blessing to have that as my side quest," Gardner said. "Golf is similar to football... It helps with my mental a lot to go out there and just hear nature. It just helped me slow my mental down, and helped me try to apply it to football as well."

Looking back, the Jets All-Pro cornerback acknowledged he had some "horrible days" during his quest to learn golfing, but did break 90 right before camp.

Players around the league have always searched for ways to combine the mental side of the game with hobbies outside of the football field. Many organizations are even putting more of an emphasis on the mental health side of a game that puts so much at stake every day for fans, coaches, executives, and players.

That fact that Gardner, at the age of just 23, was able to find what worked for him, will suit him well for the future - especially as he goes through the ebbs and flows of being an NFL cornerback.

"Sauce has some unique qualities." Jets defensive c coordinator Jeff Ulbrich said of Gardner back in minicamp. "He's a guy that's obviously, he's super long, he's big, and he's bigger than most corners, but his transitions, his foot quickness, his speed, is just so unique for a guy so high cut and long-legged. It doesn't make physical sense to me most of the time when I really watch him, especially long, streaming stuff and matching guys in the outer brakes, the matching stuff. It's a powerful tool."

Gardner is the first cornerback since the NFL merger to be named a first-team All-Pro in each of his first two seasons in the league. He has helped transform New York's defense to one of the elites across the league and has arrived as one of the top defensive players on the planet.

Related: CFL, Underdog Standout Turning Heads in Jets Training Camp

That kind of dominance can bring an excess of pressure, though, and that's where Gardner's search for a release comes into play.

Thousands of people may not agree with the Jets cornerback in his thoughts about golf being a relaxing game, but it's just another thing that makes him one of the unique stars in the NFL today.