The hits keep coming for a Miami Dolphins team that can’t seem to catch a break this offseason. The latest of top rope attacks comes from ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, who published an article handing out team superlatives for the 2025 offseason.
While one team in the AFC East got a jesting appraisal; the New England Patriots’ “most likely to need name tags at training camp”, the other two rivals, New York Jets and Buffalo Bills, received a high expectation superlative. For the Bills it was “most likely to stay the course”. The Jets received “most likely to go on a late-summer spending spree.”
Then there’s the Dolphins. Barnwell had one sentence to project the Dolphins trajectory and the writer chose “least likely to find a solution to their most pressing problem”.
“The Dolphins are facing an impasse with veteran cornerback Jalen Ramsey, and they have nobody to blame but themselves,” the writer condemns. “When they traded a third-round pick and tight end Hunter Long to the Rams for Ramsey in spring 2023, they signed Ramsey to a new deal with two years of guarantees. That money would have run out after the 2024 season, but Miami extended him with a three-year, $72 million contract just before Week 1 last year, essentially adding an additional $25 million in guarantees to his contract for the 2025 campaign.”
Barnwell Predicts Ramsey Won’t Be Moved In Time
Like many have already pointed to, Barnwell highlights the unlucky timing of the decision to split ways. With the announcement coming in April, most teams had already spent the money they had on bringing in new talent. This left the Dolphins in an inauspicious position with little to no trade leverage.
“General manager Chris Grier hasn’t been able to find a taker yet, and that’s not surprising,” Barnwell continued. “The league has been extremely hesitant to pay 30-year-old defensive backs recently, which is why there wasn’t more of a market for Ramsey’s services when the Rams dealt him two years ago. He also suffered meniscus injuries in both 2016 and 2023, with each being repaired via trims.”
Barnwell acknowledges that these injuries did not entirely hinder the corner’s ability to perform, as he put together a solid 2024 campaign. But even if a team was willing to give up virtually nothing in a trade for him, few teams have the money to do so.
“Ramsey is still a good player, but unless he’s willing to give up a significant amount of guaranteed money or the Dolphins are willing to eat some of what he’s due, it’s hard to find a way this ends amicably for all involved,” Barnwell concluded. “And given that this is the same cornerback who once showed up to training camp in an armored truck as he sought a new deal from the Jaguars, it would be surprising if he didn’t make his frustrations public in the coming months.”
Rams’ Safety Welcomes The Team-up
Ramsey’s former teammate and current Los Angeles Rams’ safety, Quentin Lake, did an interview on NFL Network Friday afternoon. His comments on the show, including his take that the Fins corner will be a Hall of Famer when it’s all said and done, fueled the ongoing trade speculation between to the two franchises.
“That would be – we would be a tough team, especially a tough defense to beat,” Lake said in the interview. “He knows the system, he’s familiar with the organization. Jalen is a God-given talent. Not only is he smart, he’s been in the league a long time playing at such a high level. Anytime you get to bring a guy like that back, he’s only going to add value. He is a star and anybody that you ask, he’s such an amazing player.”
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