Mecole Hardman’s public criticism of the New York Jets has led to quite the backlash, with two of his former teammates suggesting he pulled a very inappropriate move.
Hardman, who began the 2023 season with the Jets, criticized the team’s culture in a recent interview. Hardman said in a podcast apperance that the Jets lacked standards and did not know how to win. One Jets player had a harsh response to those quotes, dismissing Hardman as a “disgruntled former employee.”
Two other Jets players went even further, however. In a since-deleted post, cornerback Sauce Gardner cryptically suggested that the team’s offensive gameplan for their Week 6 game against the Philadelphia Eagles was leaked to the opponent.
Deleted tweet from Sauce Gardner pic.twitter.com/wssNy1Jf5h
— The Jet Press (@TheJetPress) February 28, 2024
Another Jets player was even more direct. When asked by a fan for his reaction to Hardman’s comments, tight end Kenny Yeboah said Hardman was “tripping out” and suggested the wide receiver should be asked “how the Georgia Eagles got our game plan.”
https://twitter.com/Kenny_Yeboah84/status/1762923210998182023
In other words, two Jets are strongly implying that Hardman leaked their offensive gameplan to an opponent. The heart of the claim seems to be that Hardman, a former Georgia player, gave away the plan to the Eagles, a team that has been noted for loading up on Bulldogs players in recent drafts. Notably, Hardman had been inactive the week before the Eagles game despite signing a multi-million dollar contract in the offseason, and his name had already started to show up in trade rumors at that point.
Even if any of this is true, it did not actually work, as the Jets beat Philadelphia 20-14 in a major upset.
Hardman would end up being traded back to Kansas City and ultimately caught the Super Bowl-winning touchdown in overtime. Clearly, several of his Jets teammates were not exactly rooting for his success.
