Chris Ivory is not exactly a marquee running back and yet he has been the talk of a lot of trade speculation in the past two weeks. The New Orleans Saints have a crowded roster of running backs and Ivory is lowest on the totem pole. The New York Jets have been attempting to work out a trade but nothing has happened yet. In general manager Mickey Loomis' pre-draft conference, he admitted to engaging in trade talks with the Jets but that no deal is imminent.
Loomis owned up to discussing a possible trade revolving around Ivory. The Jets hosted the running back on a team visit, but Ivory decided on signing a restricted free agent tender with New Orleans. Now, if a team wants to sign him, they must give up a second-round draft pick in order to do so. The Jets were originally offering a late-round draft pick to New Orleans for the veteran. They have extra draft picks after the Revis trade, but have yet to put anything to paper.
Loomis went on to add that multiple teams have been inquiring about a possible trade for Ivory. They are willing to listen to all offers, but are not shying away from wanting a second-round draft pick for him. Last season, Ivory spent time on a jam packed Saints' running back roster and managed only 217 yards and two touchdowns in six games.
The Jets are in desperate need for a running back. Currently they have signed Mike Goodson, Bilal Powell and Joe McKnight. While Goodson is a quality option, they need a decent player to split the reps with him. With Mark Sanchez struggling, the Jets will rely heavily on a quality ground game. The Saints currently have Pierre Thomas, Darren Sproles and Mark Ingram. They have no need for Ivory.
New Orleans will likely hold on to Ivory and see how the draft begins to play out. They can easily back away from the second-round pick and take the Jets offer if they feel their needs are being met. With the team's struggling defense, an extra pick later on might come in handy.
