Immensely talented, but a bit of a wanderer. Although Kevin Durant gets a ton of flack for being a noted wanderer over in the NBA, we may end up saying similar things about another hall-of-fame player, only this guys stars in the NFL. That is right. Miami Dolphins defensive back Jalen Ramsey wants to be traded again. I feel like he just got to Miami. Even more damning, he just got paid, too.
The good news in all this is the impending breakup between Ramsey and the Dolphins feels mutual. Ramsey does not like the direction the Dolphins are going in as a franchise, and Miami has a bit of buyer's remorse for giving him all that money. It is why alongside Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins that Ramsey has been arguably the hottest name when it comes to the NFL trade market.
Ahead of the NFL Draft, Armando Salguero of Outkick touched on what is happening with the Ramsey. Prior to going national, he cut his teeth in Miami. My biggest takeaways from Salguero's reporting are Ramsey wants to go to a winner, as well as the five teams he had listed as destinations: Atlanta, the Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Rams, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders.
Those are all NFC teams who can contend, leaving the Las Vegas Raiders potentially in the dust...
Jalen Ramsey has let it be known what type of team he will be traded to
What has been very straight forward throughout the process is that Miami seems to be more than comfortable eating the bulk of his $25.2 million salary for 2025. What has not is Miami may not be getting a ton back in compensation for him. Salguero intimates that it may only be a fifth-round pick going Miami's way if he is traded. Keep in mind that Ramsey is under contract for several more years.
If Ramsey were to be traded after June 1, that could result in a boatload of savings for the team. It might only be $10 million in savings, but every little it helps. Of course, if that were to happen, then Miami would only be getting draft compensation for 2026 or later, as the 2025 NFL Draft will have already happened a month prior. It does seem that a deal will get done, but it is just a matter of when.
Right now, I am not going to worry about the financials because the dollars and cents will have to make sense before either team is given the go-ahead with a trade. What matters to me is potential fit. Salguero only naming NFC teams that have either Super Bowl or playoff aspirations leads me to believe that Miami would be more reluctant to trade Ramsey in-conference. What about the Raiders?
This is a team that CBS Sports' Jonathan Jones mentioned alongside Atlanta as possible trade candidates for Ramsey. Neither team are well run, but neither are the Dolphins. Pete Carroll is the far more proven head coach over Raheem Morris, but Atlanta's roster is in far better shape over the Raiders'. All this means is Ramsey feels infinitely more likely to be traded to an NFC team this spring.
He does have a working rapport with Morris, but I can say that other teams are better than Atlanta.