Washington & SEA wanted
The Jets’ willingness to trade Sheldon Richardson for the better part of a year is sheer lunacy by an outfit that needs as much premium talent as it can get these days. It makes little sense. It’s downright absurd that an organization devoid of difference makers would be amenable to part with such a special talent, who practices hard during the week and plays harder on Sundays.
Richardson isn’t Muhammad Wilkerson, who team insiders say “takes a lot of plays off.”
The consensus on One Jets Drive: Richardson eats, breathes and lives football. At 26, he’s only now entering the prime of his career.
There’s an important faction within the building that wants Richardson to be a part of the organization’s rebuilding process, but general manager Mike Maccagnan seriously entertained trade offers during the draft.
Sources say that teams tried to low-ball the Jets to land the former Pro Bowl defensive lineman. For the first time, Richardson revealed details of the trade talks this offseason that included suitors that wanted him to play for less than his guaranteed $8.1 million salary as part of a fifth-year option.
“It’s a business, bro,” Richardson told the Daily News during a lengthy and open discussion about his future. “There was one team that asked me to take a pay cut ... and it was Seattle. And Washington too. There were a lot of offers. A lot of good offers. You’d be surprised.”
It’s strange to think that the Jets would trade Richardson, the 2013 Defensive Rookie of the Year and 2014 Pro Bowler, during the season or let him walk in free agency given that the organization is hoping to build a young core.
Team insiders expressed some level of concern about Richardson’s lax outlook on weight lifting sessions and his outspokenness about playing out of position in the past, but made it clear that it’s smart business to keep your best players. Richardson obviously is one of the team’s most talented players.
Richardson’s off-field transgressions (failed marijuana test and high-speed chase) have prompted some to suggest that getting rid of him would be addition by subtraction. That’s laughable.
Trading Richardson would be foolish. Trading Richardson for 50 cents on the dollar would be idiocy. Signing Richardson to a long-term deal after this season if he returns to Pro Bowl form makes the most sense regardless of the loaded defensive line that includes Leonard Williams and Wilkerson, who could be cut with minimal financial damage if he underperforms in 2017.
Remember, the Jets won 10 games in 2015 partly because of their formidable defensive line.
“That’s their decision,” Richardson said of getting a lucrative longterm contract from the Jets after the season. “Would I pay me? I’d pay me ... I would (keep Williams, Wilkerson and him), because you can save money in other places with a stout defensive line.”
Todd Bowles recently said that Richardson is “in a peaceful place” after the turbulence that defined parts of his past two seasons. Richardson is on the doorstep of landing a monster payday if he delivers in 2017, but insists that he doesn’t feel additional pressure to perform so he can cash in.
“I play football,” Richardson said. “Been playing it since I was five. No pressure at all ... Cashing in means you’re almost done. I’m still grinding. Even if I do get a big deal, I’m still grinding. Some guys do throw the towel (after they get paid)… I’m not going to do that.”