Kansas City Chiefs Called Potential Destination For Sheldon Richardson

Kansas City Chiefs a trade spot for Sheldon Richardson? Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
Kansas City Chiefs a trade spot for Sheldon Richardson? Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports /
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The New York Jets are reportedly working hard to trade Sheldon Richardson. Would the Kansas City Chiefs be a possible destination?

The Kansas City Chiefs don’t have many holes on their defense. That’s not to say there aren’t areas they can upgrade. However, there are no clear holes on that side of the ball. However, that hasn’t stopped some pundits from calling them a potential trade partner for star defensive lineman Sheldon Richardson.

Since coming to the NFL, Sheldon Richardson has been a solid player for the Jets defense. The big defensive lineman is able to hold the point of attack or get into the backfield with equal ability. He is an all-around quality football player. However, the talk of him coming to KC is a bit strange. Here’s what Connor Hughes of NJ.com said about Richardson to the Chiefs…

"Sheldon Richardson is born and raised in Missouri. He spends a significant amount of time there in the offseason. A trade to the Chiefs would be a coming-home party. The defense could use a guy of his caliber, too."

On its surface, I have a hard time taking this talk very seriously. Sure, Sheldon Richardson is a star 3-4 defensive end with tons of talent. However, it’s not like there is a need for the Chiefs to get a defensive end. In fact, I would be hard-pressed to tell you there was even an opening on the roster for one!

The Chiefs current starters at defensive end are both very capable players, Jaye Howard and Allen Bailey. Some folks are already getting ready to ask: “What about Chris Jones?!” Yeah, exactly. That’s how stacked the Chiefs are at the position. Jones is likely to become a full-time starter this year, meaning one of the current starters is now a backup!

Oh yeah, and that doesn’t even factor in Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who played very well last year.

Does It Make Any Sense?

So we’ve established that the Kansas City Chiefs not only have starters at defensive end for now, but the future is well in hand as well. However, some may argue that Sheldon Richardson could fit at the nose tackle position instead. Sure…except we just signed Bennie Logan to fill that role.

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Now, Sheldon Richardson could make sense at the tackle spot if it was a long-term solution. Unfortunately, Richardson only has one year left on his contract. So he would literally be in the same exact situation as Bennie Logan. I’m still not seeing what sense that makes.

Oh, and speaking of that one year…it’s for $8 million guaranteed. The Chiefs do not have that kind of salary cap space. Even if KC were to trade for Sheldon Richardson and then get him a contract extension, that $8 million would hit the 2017 salary cap.

All in all, this is a move that makes no sense at all. There just isn’t any kind of justification for doing it. We haven’t even got into the fact that Sheldon Richardson has been a bit of a problem child for the Jets. No, this is a pretty simple one to break down. It makes no sense and it should not even be considered.

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The Kansas City Chiefs may be in the market for some defensive help, but it should not be at defensive end. Nor should it be for a one-year defensive tackle. Maybe it’s just that time of year to make up crazy trade ideas, but I don’t see any merit to something like this.