What Will New York Jets Do Without Sheldon Richardson?

It's not the New York Jets' fault that one of their most important defensive players was punished by the NFL for violating the league's substance abuse policy. However, it's the Jets who must deal with the brunt of the consequences of Sheldon Richardson's actions.

The 2013 Defensive Rookie of the Year and 2014 Pro Bowl defensive lineman will miss the first four games of the season. The Jets are now left to wonder if they can overcome Richardson's absence, and exactly how they'll do it.

The Jets defensive line considers themselves among the best and most talented groups in the league, so surely they have the depth to overcome the loss of one of their players, albeit one of their best players.

At the same time as figuring out how to work around his absence on the field, the Jets could also be dealing with some added repercussions off the field—particularly, at the negotiating table with one of their other top defensive linemen.

Indeed, Richardson's absence will have a ripple effect through the franchise. 

Leonard Williams Thrust Into Spotlight

By definition, the Jets' selection of Leonard Williams was a luxury pick. The USC defensive lineman was considered, in many circles, to be the best player in the draft. He was the top-rated prospect by CBS Sports and earned the highest predraft grade of any player from NFL.com. 

With all that said, there's little doubt that he'd be ready to contribute in a major role as early as Week 1 if need be. The key, though, is those last three words: "if need be." The Jets appeared to have their three starting defensive linemen for the base 3-4, with Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson on the ends and Damon Harrison at nose tackle. 

Even as the top-rated player in the draft, though, NFL.com's Lance Zierlein had some criticisms about his game before the draft—criticisms which don't necessarily limit his ability to be effective in Week 1, but which certainly indicate he has areas he must improve:

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[Williams] has the look and feel of the biggest, strongest kid on the playground but hasn't figured out how to unlock his natural gifts and consistently dominate the rest of the kids on the playground just yet. Williams can play in an odd or even front, and is able to hold the point as a two-gapper or disrupt upfield. With coaching and more experience, Williams should be able to match the athleticism with the power and become a consistent Pro Bowler with a ceiling that goes even higher than that.

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Williams was considered a "luxury" because he wasn't necessary to the immediate success of the team. Now, though, he may be under more pressure to be ready to contribute in a big way right out of the gate with Richardson suspended for the first four games.

Different Names, Same Game Plan

Williams might be a bigger part of the Jets' game plan than they had anticipated, but that doesn't mean that the game plan has to change all that much. 

Todd Bowles became famous running the 3-4 defense for the Arizona Cardinals, and he shouldn't even briefly consider turning his defensive scheme on its head just because of one player. As Zierlein noted above, Williams is scheme versatile in that he could carry out duties in either a two-gap or one-gap scheme.

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A one-gap scheme allows its linemen to rush hard upfield and make plays in the opponent's backfield. That's because they are only responsible for one gap, which allows them to attack that gap. 

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We often celebrate the linemen who rack up the sacks, but in a two-gap scheme, defensive linemen are asked to hold their ground at the point of attack. They must be in control of two gaps at the same time, meaning they are usually asked to win leverage on the opposing lineman and hold him there so that they can make a play in either gap in case of a running play.

In Bowles' time with the Cardinals, his defensive linemen were asked to do a mix of both one-gapping and two-gapping. That helps explain why he didn't necessarily have one or two dominant sack specialists, but instead had the sack totals distributed relatively evenly among his players (16 players with at least one sack, 35 total sacks in 2014; 14 players with at least one sack, 47 total sacks in 2013; one player with more than 10 sacks in a season). 

That being said, his defensive linemen were among the leaders in sacks. Calais Campbell (2013 and 2014), Darnell Dockett (2013) and Frostee Rucker (2014) were each among the top five on the team in sacks at one time during Bowles' run as defensive coordinator. 

The Jets have been built in the mold of a one-gapping 3-4 scheme, but all of their linemen have the ability to two-gap. We will probably see a mix of both from the Jets defensive front seven in 2014, but that would have been the case whether it was Williams or Richardson lining up on the starting defensive line in Weeks 1-4. 

More Urgency With Muhammad Wilkerson?

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There are two angles the Jets must consider as potential repercussions with how Richardson's suspension affects negotiations with Muhammad Wilkerson: short-term and long-term.

Short-term, the Jets have to be considering the possibility that Wilkerson continues to hold out while trying to get a new contract. With Richardson already out, the Jets could be without two of their best defensive linemen and two of their best overall players.

This could be an opportunity for Wilkerson's agent to spook the Jets into coming a little closer to meeting his contractual demands—whether or not Wilkerson is seriously considering missing practices or games at a going rate of $30,000 per day.

Long-term, it will be difficult for the Jets to retain both of their star defensive linemen. Wilkerson could fetch a contract worth at least eight figures per year. Richardson may only be entering the third year of his rookie contract, but the Jets are less than 12 months away from deciding whether or not they want to exercise the optional fifth year of his deal.

Bleacher Report's Jason Cole offers some insight into the Jets' dilemma:

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Prior to the suspension that Richardson got for marijuana use, the Jets considered Richardson the better player between the two. However, in this offseason, not only are they dealing with the suspension, but there is concern about Richardson's long-term contract demands, and a belief that Richardson is willing to do whatever it takes, including hold out, to get that long-term deal with the kind of money that, say, [Miami Dolphins defensive tackle] Ndamukong Suh received [six years, $114.375 million, according to OverTheCap.com]. 

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It goes without saying that the Jets would love to have Wilkerson back, but only at a dollar figure that makes sense to the team. If Wilkerson gets a big-money contract, they may not be able to afford to keep Richardson around at a similar price tag. 

For his part, Richardson has promised that this will not happen again—an important promise to keep. Richardson is now subject to random testing, and the next time he tests positive will be the last time we see him on a football field for a year.

With the threat of a one-year suspension looming over Richardson's head, it makes sense that this suspension would bring down his long-term value in the eyes of the Jets. At the same time, Richardson probably still views himself as a dominant player, worthy of a top-dollar contract.

These issues get thrust to the forefront now with the possibility that the Jets could be without two of their star defensive linemen to start the season.