[Sport] A Dirty Three-way

So the Jets finally traded DE John Abraham (28yrs old, average 8.9 sacks per season). He had become quite surly in New York and was obviously angry that the Jets had franchise-tagged him just to trade him (which is now illegal under the new collective bargaining agreement, it’s in there trust me).

The trade went three ways between Atlanta, Denver and the Jets. Everyone got what they wanted: the Jets got an extra pick in the first round of the draft; Abraham gets to play for Atlanta (which is closer to his mother and his daughter); Denver gets the #15 pick this year (in addition to the #22 pick they have from Washington); and Atlanta gets Abraham (to complement DE Patrick Kerney) and a couple of third round picks.

Here is a run down of who got what and what they gave up for it.

Team	Gave up	Got
New York Jets	DE John Abraham	2006 first round pick #29
Atlanta	2006 first round pick #15	DE John Abraham 2006 third round pick #93 2007 fourth round pick #??
Denver Broncos	2006 first round pick #29 2006 third round pick #93 2007 fourth round pick #??	2006 first round pick #15

Personally I think Atlanta may have done quite well (unless Abraham gets injured again). The Jets will be a little disappointed to get #29 instead of #15 or (especially) #22, but it’s still a good deal, an extra low pick like 6^th rounder might have been a nice sweetener though. But the Broncos traded three draft picks to move 14 places up the draft order. I’m unsure if this is a wise move but we’ll find out in a few years.

Adam Schefter wrote about a nice coincidence regarding this trade:

It only figures that the Broncos would land the 15th overall pick in the upcoming draft. The Broncos have more history in the slot than most teams.

In 1996, with Mike Shanahan's first first-round draft pick with the Broncos, Denver selected linebacker John Mobley at No. 15.

In 2000, the Broncos traded up in the draft and selected cornerback Deltha O'Neal at No. 15.

Then two years ago, the Broncos wanted wide receiver Michael Clayton, who wound up going to Tampa Bay at No. 15. Denver then opted for linebacker D.J. Williams.

Now, thanks to the three-way trade involving Atlanta, the New York Jets and Denver, the Broncos are back in familiar territory.