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New York Jets cornerback Ahmad 'Sauce' Gardner and Barstool Sports were both included in a defamation lawsuit stemming from an incident in which he falsely claimed a woman had an OnlyFans account on social media.
Kalli Mariakis, 42, a mother from Mississippi, filed the lawsuit in New Jersey Superior Court on December 31, according to documents obtained and viewed by the New York Post on Wednesday (January 8). Gardner and Mariakis, who is described in the lawsuit as an "ardent" fan of the rival Buffalo Bills, were involved in an exchange on X, formerly Twitter, after she responded to a post about Gardner installing a golf simulator with, "A simulator to teach you how not to commit pass interference or defensive holding?"
Gardner then insinuated that Mariakis not only had an account on OnlyFans, a sexually explicit content subscription platform, but also direct messaged him a link to it.
“I’m sure your husband wouldn’t like it if I told him you [direct messaged] me your OF link would he?” Gardner replied at the time.
Mariakas, who publicly denied having the account, accused Gardner of making a “knowingly false and malicious statement,” while also claiming that Barstool Sports amplified the situation by publishing a blog entitled 'If you’re a Married OnlyFans Model Who’s Been DMing Sauce Gardner, You’d Be Wise Not to Troll Him about His Coverage Skill' on the incident, which was still up on its website as of Thursday (January 9) morning. The mother, who is seeking compensatory damages, punitive damages, court costs and fees, claims she and her family “experienced numerous embarrassing moments and harassment from acquaintances, friends, family, co-workers and the public at large” in relation to the incident, with the lawsuit adding that others had “cast aspersions on plaintiff and raised questions about her internet activity, especially referencing plaintiff’s alleged — and non-existent — OnlyFans account and, in that connection, questioned her character and reputation as a respectable young-women, wife and mother.”
Gardner, "or someone acting on his behalf," deleted the post shortly after the incident occurred. The two-time All-Pro cornerback was also involved in a social media scandal during the 2024 season, having to apologize in November after firing back at a reporter and a fan following the Jets' loss to the Arizona Cardinals on November 10, claiming he deleted X from his phone at the time.
“That’s on me. Me being a leader of the team, of the defense, I can’t be on social media with my emotions, saying certain stuff,” Gardner said via the New York Post. “I know better. My coaches know that I know better. My teammates know that I know better. I’ve just got to be better. Obviously things are not going the way we expected them to go. But what I can say is I’m going to do everything in my power to change that.”