Pro Football Rumors
If you look up Colts cornerback Sauce Gardner on sites like ESPN.com and Pro-Football-Reference.com, you will notice they list his date of birth as Aug. 31, 2000. That would mean the two-time first-team All-Pro is 25 years old. Fake news, according to Gardner, who told James Boyd of The Athletic he was born Aug. 31, 2001.
“I’m 24!” the four-year veteran said. “It’s crazy that I’m even being asked this.”
The Colts confirmed to Boyd that Gardner’s passport lists Aug. 31, 2000, as his birthday. The NFL was also already aware of Gardner’s correct age before he informed Boyd.
In an email to Boyd, chief spokesman Brian McCarthy wrote: “Clubs notify us of any incorrect birthdates that would have appeared on their college sites when a player signs. Players also self-verify their birthdates and other personal information through a player portal.”
While Boyd was unable to find the original source of Gardner’s false date of birth, we now know he will turn 25 just under two weeks before the Colts open their season against the Ravens on Sept. 13. It will be the first full season in Indianapolis for Gardner, whom the Colts acquired from the Jets for two first-round picks and wide receiver Adonai Mitchell before last November’s deadline. The Colts were 7-2 at the time and vying for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, but the gamble did not yield the desired results.
Gardner dealt with a calf injury and played just four games after the trade, while three concussions ruined fellow starting cornerback Charvarius Ward‘s season. Gardner and Ward looked like one of the league’s top corner tandems on paper when Colts general manager Chris Ballard swung the trade, but they only played together for parts of three games. Those were just a couple of several key injuries for the Colts, who lost seven of eight to finish 8-9 and extend their playoff drought to five years. The Colts will expect better this season with Gardner, Ward and quarterback Daniel Jones among notable players returning from injuries.
On what he wants to accomplish this season, Gardner told Boyd: “All-Pro, Pro Bowl, all of that good stuff. Team goals? Just getting to the playoffs because that’s one thing I haven’t done. And getting a ‘chip.”
