Third year New Orleans Saints restricted free agent Chris Ivory visited the New York Jets Saturday, according to league sources. Ivory received a second-round tender this offseason, meaning if the Jets extend an offer to Ivory that the Saints decline to match, they will receive a second-round draft choice from New York.
The Jets do not want to surrender such a high pick for Ivory, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini, but they could be interested in making a deal for him. The Saints have shown interest in dealing Ivory out of their crowded backfield and the Jets have indicated they would be willing to part with a late-round pick. The Saints' running back rotation includes Pierre Thomas, Mark Ingram, Darren Sproles and Travaris Cadet, along with Ivory.
In March, the Jets signed Mike Goodson to a three-year, $6.89 million pact to replace the departed Shonn Greene, who left for the Tennessee Titans. Goodson is a shiftier back than Greene, however, and the Jets tend to have a power back on the roster. Their rotation currently consists of Goodson, Bilal Powell and Joe McKnight. If this is the running back crew for the first week of the season, it will be the first time since 1994 that the Jets enter a season without a 1,000-yard rusher on the roster.
Ivory's best season was his rookie year in 2010, when he carried the ball 137 times for 716 yards and five touchdowns. He averaged 5.2 yards per carry that year. While his rushing attempts have gone down since then, Ivory's per carry stats have remained consistent.
Last season, with just 40 carries on his ledger, Ivory averaged 5.4 yards per run, finishing the season with 217 yards and two touchdowns. Ivory was only active for six games in 2012.
Dealing Ivory for a pick, even a late-rounder would likely be a help to the Saints in constructing their 2013 roster. They only have five picks in this draft, and were penalized a second-rounder by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell due to the bounty scandal.
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