The NFL trade deadline will pass this afternoon with likely little more than a shrug and a yawn.

Dan Patrick discussed this topic on his morning radio show. Part of the problem is that the season is so young that most teams don’t know yet whether or not they are contenders. Sure, the Detroit Lions and Kansas City Chiefs know they aren’t going anywhere this year and you have heard the names Tony Gonzalez, Larry Johnson, Roy Williams and Jon Kitna mentioned in talks.

But other than Gonzalez, who is probably less than 50/50 to be traded, none of the aforementioned players are likely to end up on teams they could help lead to the playoffs by the end of the day.

The Cincinnati Bengals are having another dud of a season as well. But nobody wants most of the tradeable assets on that team because they might end up in jail before they arrive at the new team’s headquarters. And for the love of God, the Oakland Raiders should be willing to trade a running back – but Al Davis either thinks he can lead a turnaround this season or he simply scares folks away.

Otherwise, in the era of parity, teams that are 2-4 or 3-3 still have enough of a chance to make the playoffs that it is too early to give up on the season.

Patrick’s suggestion in talking with the NFL Network’s Adam Schefter was backing the deadline up to week 12 or 13 so teams have more of a body of work by which to judge their teams. I think that’s the correct move to make.

Not only will the bad teams know they don’t have a chance to go to the playoffs, but the good teams will have a better idea of the holes they need to fill or the injuries for which they need to compensate. The Chiefs could continue their rebuilding process adding three or four draft picks for Johnson (as long as he stays out of jail) and Gonzalez while the New York Giants could add the tight end they need to make a run or the Indianapolis Colts could bring in an insurance policy against Joseph Addai’s hamstring issues.

Now, this isn’t the biggest issue in the world. The trade deadline in the NFL will never be as exciting as it is in baseball. Systems are more complicated and it takes too long for players to learn them down pat. You also have to find trading partners that have room under the salary cap. But deadline day might get more than a passing glance if it were set late enough where it can actually make a difference.