As highly unlikely as it might be, Maurice Jones-Drew has stated that he is open to being traded from the Jacksonville Jaguars. This comes on the heels of a curious comment by Jaguars' owner Shad Khan that indicates the team plans on continuing their hard-line stance against the reigning NFL Rushing Champion.
“"Train is leaving the station. Run, get on it."
Khan, who was has owned the Jaguars for less than a calendar year, continues his public negotiating ploys with Jones-Drew. This obviously hasn't gone over well with the running back.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Tuesday that the contract stalemate will probably continue into the season. This lends a little more credence to the idea that Jones-Drew could actually be traded. At some point it becomes evident that a relationship cannot be mended and a divorce is imminent. While I am not ready to draw that conclusion, you do have to wonder just how far this situation has gone between the player and his team. Is it reparable?
With that in mind, let's take a look at what teams could be interested in Jones-Drew and could make a play for him.
Denver Broncos
This seems to make some sense for a multitude of different reasons. Willis Mcgahee is getting up there in age and doesn't quite seem to fit what the Broncos are attempting to do on the offensive side of the ball. Despite a near 1,200 yard performance for Denver in 2011, McGahee has touched the ball nearly 2,000 times in his career and should be slowing down at some point in the not so distant future.
Ronnie Hillman, Denver's third-round pick in the 2012 NFL draft, is going to be a stellar running back in the National Football League. That being said, he hasn't proven it at this level yet and could actually be part of a package for Jones-Drew.
Denver would have somewhat of a difficult time being able to fit the Jaguars' running back under their cap in 2012 and moving forward. They have $41 million allocated to Champ Bailey, Elvis Dumervil and Peyton Manning next season. That is a whole heck of a lot of money for just three players. While Denver could easily restructure their contracts, it makes little sense for them to bring on someone else that is going to be making eight figures.
It also makes little sense for a team that is in the Broncos situation with a veteran quarterback to throw future draft picks and young players in a package for Jones-Drew. I just don't see them even contemplating it.
Cincinnati Bengals
Probably the most likely scenario. The Bengals have a surplus of picks, most notably a second rounder in the 2013 NFL draft from the Oakland Raiders in the Carson Palmer trade. They have a young quarterback and future All-Pro wide receiver. Cincinnati is also going to be in contention for quite some time with the amount of young talent they have on the roster.
Adding Jones-Drew to the equation would quickly make their offensive one of the most dynamic in the entire National Football League.
Cincinnati also possesses the young talent to pull off this type of trade. A combination of picks and a player like Dre Kirkpatrick could really intrigue Jacksonville moving forward. Of course this is all conjecture, but Cincinnati seems like the most likely trade partner if Jones-Drew is actually put on the trade block. They are also in a relatively good salary cap situation moving forward. Well, at least until some of their youngsters start looking for long-term extensions or hit free agency.
New York Jets
The Jets are in a really bad salary cap situation and couldn't even entertain a trade like this until following the 2012 season. This puts them under the proverbial eight-ball because they would have to wait until/if Jones-Drew holds out the whole year.
New York doesn't seem to possess the young talent or surplus of picks to acquire a player of this caliber in a trade.
They have the need and would love to pickup the services of Jones-Drew....I just don't see it being too realistic at this point.