'Sauce' Says Not What It Seems Following Pic of Him Appearing Beside Notorious Mobster

New York Jets cornerback Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner came under fire over the weekend after a photo emerged of him appearing beside a Philadelphia mobster during 4th of July celebrations in South Florida.

The NFL, as well as other professional sports leagues, have been rocked by gambling scandals over the past year.  This might not be one of them, as "Sauce" tells it.

Joseph "Skinny" Merlino suggested via his Instagram account the two might do a podcast together.

"My main man @saucegardner stay tuned Podcast coming soon."

Jets CB Sauce Gardner was hanging out with alleged Philly mob boss Joseph “Skinny Joey” Merlino in Florida  pic.twitter.com/lMU70tOagG

— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) July 7, 2024

"Sauce" responded over the weekend that the two are not "hanging out.''

Dov, it's funny because I know that you know I wasn't "hanging out" with him. Rent must be due eh ? https://t.co/9TbnzTNFBT

— SAUCE GARDNER (@iamSauceGardner) July 7, 2024

Merlino plead guilty to an illegal betting charge in 2018, just two weeks before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to abolish The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA).  Two years ago, Merlino was reportedly in talks with Barstool Sports to do a podcast.  At the time, Barstool Sports was in the process of becoming a sportsbook, later rebranded by Penn Entertainment as ESPN Bet.

Merlino previously served prison time for racketeering.   He's currently living in South Florida. It seems as if he's really turned his life around, but there's still that elephant in the room that's inescapable.