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Sheldon Richardson only played 44 of 73 snaps Monday night against the Colts, his lowest percentage of total snaps all year. He was credited with one dumb personal foul, but not a single tackle. You heard that correctly? He didn't have a single tackle in the 44 plays he was in.If you can't remember seeing him, we're not surprised, he appeared in only 6 defensive snaps in the 2nd half.
Why did Sheldon appear in only 6 snaps in the 2nd half? According to Todd Bowles it was just "game plan". Watch the game again, and you'll quickly see why Sheldon Richardson was largely benched for the 2nd half. Todd Bowles can say game plan all day, until he's blue in the face, it really comes down to effort.
We've watched Sheldon develop over the first three years of his career as a Jet, this year his play has fallen off a cliff. I know that he's found himself out of position at points this year, but 44 tackles and 1.5 sacks through 3/4 of the season for a man of his talent? That's unacceptable. Go back and watch our defensive series over the first 3-4 Indianapolis drives and tell me he didn't quit. The effort wasn't there, that's as clear as day.
The problem for the Jets is that by all indications they were looking to trade Sheldon this off-season. With another disappointing lineman tied to the team long-term in Muhammad Wilkerson, there is no room at the inn for Sheldon. Especially when you consider there will come a time when we'll need to pay Leonard Williams, a player who may end up being better than both of them.
Reports indicated that the Jets tried to trade Sheldon Richardson during the season and they asked for a 1st round selection in return. Teams balked at that. So now we'll be trying to trade him after a dip in production and game-tape that shows his effort was nowhere near good enough. Combine this with his off-field issues and that's a tough sell for anyone.
There will be a team who bites on Sheldon. His natural talent is off the charts on occasions, but if you're expecting the Jets to get a 1st round selection, then you're in dreamland. They couldn't get it during the season and they won't get it this off-season.
Expect the Jets to trade Sheldon, but don't be surprised if the compensation we receive is a lot lower than expected. Sheldon really isn't helping his trade value with performances like Monday.