One of the very first moves that Miami Dolphins general manager Chris Grier made this offseason was the acquisition of cornerback Jalen Ramsey from the Los Angeles Rams.
Ramsey, 28, has been one of the most impressive cornerbacks in the NFL since being selected fifth overall in 2016. However, the Rams were only able to get a third-round pick and tight end Hunter Long for a player who could find himself in Canton one day.
A big part of the reason Los Angeles couldn’t get more in return was that it was known he wanted to be in Miami. Albert Breer of the MMQB detailed the trade this week, including how badly Ramsey wanted to be in South Florida.
“I’m not going anywhere but there,” he told his agent, David Mulugheta. “So make sure that’s where I end up.”
Breer says that Rams general manager Les Snead asked for more but Grier stood pat. Snead eventually landed on Long and the third-round pick, but apparently that wasn’t the best offer.
“There were teams willing to go further than that, but the Rams wanted to do right by Ramsey, and they also knew what Ramsey himself did — that no one would trade for the corner without knowing Ramsey would sign off on the deal,” Breer wrote.
Ramsey wanted guarantees that he’d be around in the form of money, something he wasn’t getting in his original deal. After a reworked agreement, the two sides were pleased, and the trade was made. Ramsey had won. And so did the Dolphins.
