NEW YORK (AP) -- The New York Jets have exercised their fifth-year option on defensive lineman Sheldon Richardson, keeping him under contract with the team through the 2017 season.
The team also has announced Monday that it has declined the option, as expected, on oft-injured cornerback Dee Milliner, making the 2013 first-round draft pick a free agent after this season.
Richardson has 16 1/2 career sacks and was the 2013 Defensive Rookie of the Year after being selected 13th overall, four spots after the Jets took Milliner. Richardson's immediate playing future is uncertain because he faces possible discipline from the NFL after being arrested last July and later pleading guilty in January to resisting arrest.