Joining Vic Fangio as 2023 Dolphins additions that won’t result in a long-term fit, Jalen Ramsey is on the trade block. Interested teams have a transparent window to amass the All-Pro cornerback — in what could be his third profession trade — before and through the draft.
The Dolphins have let Ramsey seek a trade despite providing more guaranteed money — via a September 2024 extension (three years, $72.3MM) — soon after Patrick Surtain reset the cornerback market. A trade before June 1, nevertheless, could be pricey for the Dolphins, as $25.2MM in dead money (that’s, in the event that they don’t eat any portion of Ramsey’s pay) would come their way. However the draft represents a natural trade window for the team to maneuver off this recently authorized contract.
One potential suitor has emerged. Rams brass didn’t shut down the thought of reacquiring Ramsey two years after sending him to Miami.
“He’s an amazing player,” Sean McVay said, via The Athletic’s Jourdan Rodrigue. “We all know him thoroughly … we all know him intimately. You would definitely never rule out the potential of that. … There’s lots of layers that might have to be worked out with a player of his magnitude, and among the various things that accompany that. But you’ll never eliminate the potential of adding a complete stud.”
Les Snead has discussed trade parameters with the Dolphins, per Rodrigue, though that is merely teams touching base on trade-up or trade-down maneuvers ahead of the draft. The Rams could conceivably include Ramsey in such a move, if a pick-swap deal is to be considered. The team obtained a 2023 third-round pick and backup tight end Hunter Long for Ramsey in 2023. That represents a lightweight return for a player pointed toward the Hall of Fame, and the Dolphins may not have the ability to fetch that; Ramsey will turn 31 this yr.
The Rams have shown a willingness to reunite with corners they previously parted with. L.A. brought Troy Hill back via a trade through the 2022 draft, and the team re-signed Darious Williams after the Jaguars cut him last yr. A Ramsey reunion could be a much higher-profile move, considering the nine-year veteran’s stature and contract. The Rams have two veteran deals (for Williams and Ahkello Witherspoon) on their payroll, but their CB group just isn’t particularly costly right away. Rookie-deal presences comprise the remainder of L.A.’s cornerback contingent.
While on the back nine in his profession, Ramsey stays an upper-echelon corner. He earned Pro Bowl honors in a 10-game Dolphins 2023 debut, and while Pro-Football-Reference’s coverage metrics didn’t churn out comparable numbers last season, Pro Football Focus slotted the boundary stopper tenth amongst CBs in 2024. Ramsey can be signed through 2028, via an extension that comprises modest base salaries but option bonuses. Ramsey’s 2025 compensation can be guaranteed, complicating matters further for an acquiring team. To date, clubs are usually not open to paying the complete Ramsey freight in 2025.
The Rams acquired Ramsey while constructing their Super Bowl LVI-winning nucleus, sending the Jaguars two first-round picks as he staged an in-season hold-in of sorts. That deal worked out for the Rams, who saw Ramsey earn back-to-back first-team All-Pro honors in his first two full seasons (2020, 2021) in L.A. The team gave him a five-year, $100MM extension before the 2020 season, but by 2023, it was trying to cut costs. Los Angeles sent that $20MM-AAV deal to Miami, as Ramsey sought more guaranteed money. Not only did the Dolphins eventually extend him, they approved a transforming that featured more guaranteed money upon initially trading for him.
Miami accomplished an analogous reworking with Tyreek Hill‘s contract last summer, as the long run elite speed merchant angled for a redone deal. Each players at the moment are trade candidates, though each Mike McDaniel and Chris Grier have voiced expectations Hill can be back in 2025.
