Coming off a 5-12 season, the Los Angeles Rams have been forced to make some drastic changes to their roster with Jalen Ramsey being the latest casualty.
The Rams went into the offseason over the salary cap and in an even worse spot long-term if they tried to kept their current core together. Because of that, they have made some difficult decisions, releasing a pair of veterans in Bobby Wagner and Leonard Floyd. They have also allowed Allen Robinson to explore trade options, expressing a willingness to pay down some of his salary to get a deal done.
The possibility of trading Ramsey has also existed for a while now, and with the start of the new league year on the horizon, it has come to fruition. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Rams are trading their star cornerback to the Miami Dolphins for tight end Hunter Long and a 2023 third-round pick:
Sources: The #Rams are in talks to trade All-Pro CB Jalen Ramsey to the #Dolphins. A blockbuster. pic.twitter.com/CeR9zuJi9T
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 12, 2023
Los Angeles receives a third-round pick and TE Hunter Long. https://t.co/uu9qMFVOE5
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 12, 2023
Ramsey himself reacted to the trade and seems excited to be going back to Florida, where he attended Florida State University:
MOOD pic.twitter.com/BRLYujsNqT
— Jalen Ramsey (@jalenramsey) March 12, 2023
I prayed for this specifically for about a month & now it’s happening! 🙏🏾@MiamiDolphins LETSGO! 🧡
— Jalen Ramsey (@jalenramsey) March 12, 2023
The blockbuster trade marks the end of an era for the Rams and Ramsey, who was acquired from the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2019 and was named to four Pro Bowls and two All-Pro teams in four seasons. Ramsey was a captain for the Rams the last two seasons, winning a Super Bowl in 2021-22.
At age 28, Ramsey still has good years ahead of him though, so the compensation the Rams are getting back seems a bit light. Ramsey was Pro Football Focus’ third-ranked cornerback and first-ranked run defender in all of football in 2022, and now will join a quality Dolphins defense led by Vic Fangio.
While the Rams may take a step back in 2023 to reset their salary cap after parting with key players like Ramsey, Wagner and Floyd, they will at least be ready to reload in 2024.
With McVay committing to the organization in the long-term, it appears they value that cap flexibility in 2024 and beyond as opposed to giving this core one last run at another Super Bowl.
Without Ramsey leading the secondary now though, the Rams will be relying on their young cornerbacks like Cobie Durant and Derion Kendrick with the position also likely being addressed in the draft.
The Rams have been looking to get younger at tight end and get a former third-round pick in Long, although he only has one catch in two NFL seasons.
