Will Sheldon Richardson be traded today?

It's long been rumored that the Jets have been looking to trade Sheldon Richardson, but had been unable to obtain adequate value for him. Reports seemed to indicate they'd be lucky to even get a third round pick for him, but you'd expect the Jets to be working the phones today.

Any contender looking for an infusion of talent that used a third round pick on Richardson will be potentially maximizing the immediate return on that pick.

Yes, there are risks involved due to the potential for Richardson to repeat some of his off-field mistakes and the fear that it could end up being a one-year rental. Nevertheless, he figures to be motivated and focused as he enters his contract year - and if he walks at the end of it, you could theoretically recover the pick you traded via the compensatory pick calculation.

So, if it is going to happen, today could be the day. However, the fact a deal still hasn't happened perhaps suggests nobody is biting. If that's the case, the Jets might just opt to retain him on his $8 million salary and rebuild his value, perhaps with a view to a midseason trade if the team is struggling as anticipated.

Ultimately, I've been suggesting that Richardson could be dealt for what I've been calling "The Vilma Package". When the Jets traded Jonathan Vilma after the 2007 season, he also had risks involved (this time due to injury) and a year left on his contract.

The deal saw the Jets receive a current year fourth round pick, together with a conditional pick. The conditional pick, which depended on playing time and whether Vilma re-signed with the Saints, could have been anything from a fourth to a second-rounder, but ended up as a third rounder.

(As it turns out, the Saints side-stepped the re-signing condition by letting Vilma hit free agency before re-signing him, but I suspect the Jets always knew that was a possibility and essentially included that clause to make the deal look better at the time).

If that's the best deal they can come up with - and this (or some version of it) would seem to be the optimal way of protecting both sides' interests - then perhaps the deal might happen overnight instead.

Either way, we should know soon if Richardson's time with the Jets has run its course.

What do you think will happen with Richardson? What deal would you be happy with?