Concerning Details Emerge on Steelers' Jalen Ramsey Trade

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins decided to shake up the trade market once most things had calmed down following the 2025 NFL Draft, entering into a trade together.

The trade involved a Day 3 pick swap as well as safety Minkah Fitzpatrick heading to the Dolphins for Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith.

The trade has garnered a plethora of opinions on both sides of the aisle, with some suggesting that the Steelers had no reason to make the trade, while others see the benefit of getting Smith out of the trade when the Dolphins could only land one player. Fitzpatrick was unable to create the bigger highlight plays the last couple seasons in Pittsburgh, so Pittsburgh seemed less likely to keep him long term.

Now, however, there is a new reasons why the Dolphins may have entered the trade. From their perspective, Ramsey and Smith were both aging players with production slightly below expectations, so it made sense for them to enter the trade. Fitzpatrick is also aging, but the Dolphins likely see the possibility of turning his career around moreso than Ramsey or Smith. But, new information seems to have come out that further explains the trade.

According to Dave Hyde of the Miami Sun-Sentinel, Ramsey's behavior in the locker room was a driving force behind the trade. Hyde pointed out Ramsey's lack of teamwork and punctuality issues in a recent article about the matter.

"Let’s start here: The Miami Dolphins won’t miss cornerback Jalen Ramsey. They won’t miss him regularly showing up for practice as the rest of the team was in the middle of stretching." Hyde wrote. "They won’t miss how he constantly undermined defensive coordinator Vic Fangio two years ago and coach Mike McDaniel last season in a manner that spread like a bad odor through the larger team."

The Steelers have a track record of working with players who have behavioral issues, but typically do not keep the players on long term. If Ramsey is to go the way of players in the past, it would not make much sense that they traded for him if they knew this information.