Do Raiders Make Sense As Ramsey Landing Spot?

There don’t seem to be too many teams lining up to trade for Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey. 

The cornerback was an excused absence from last week’s Mandatory Minicamp, but trade talks haven’t appeared to move much. However, Cody Benjamin of CBS predicted a new team could make a play for the former All-Pro.  

Benjamin believes the Las Vegas Raiders could make a move for Ramsey, writing: 

"A reunion with the Los Angeles Rams makes the most sense from a title-chasing perspective, but if it's compensation that ultimately seals the deal here, a move to Sin City feels right up Ramsey's alley; the Las Vegas Raiders are flush with salary cap space, and coach Pete Carroll is all about physical defense." 

Let’s take a look at whether the Raiders would make sense as a landing spot for Ramsey. 

Ramsey’s Fit With Raiders 

A quick look at the Raiders’ depth chart makes the thought process behind this landing spot hard to argue with. 

Las Vegas is slated to start Eric Stokes, a first-round bust signed from the Packers, and Jakorian Bennett, who outplayed his status as a fourth-round selection last season, but isn’t an ideal starter. 

Those are high-upside players, and the Raiders have interesting young depth players, but there really isn’t a single proven, high-impact player on the roster. Ramsey would change that pretty quickly and align with the Raiders’ push to be more competitive this season. 

From a money perspective, the Raiders have a little more than $36.1 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap, so they should have no problem taking on Ramsey’s salary — or at least a good portion of it. 

The other thing worth noting is that Raiders Coach Pete Carroll has an excellent history of managing cornerbacks with “big” personalities. Caroll was a major factor in creating Seattle’s Legion of Boom and would likely be excited at the idea of working with a player like Ramsey. 

However, whether Ramsey would be excited to join the Raiders is also a factor. Ramsey is 30 years old, and his play took a small dip last season. It would be more than understandable if he didn’t believe the Raiders were close enough to winning a championship. 

Ramsey’s opinion does matter. It shouldn’t really matter to the Dolphins, but it will matter to whatever team acquires him. If Ramsey doesn’t want to play in Las Vegas, it’s hard to imagine the Raiders acquiring him. 

What Could Miami Get In Return? 

Benjamin predicted the Raiders would send the Dolphins a 2026 fifth-round pick in this hypothetical, which seems pretty reasonable. 

Although Ramsey’s play would indicate he’s better than that, the Dolphins have zero leverage, and any team acquiring Ramsey would have to take on $21 million this season. 

Sure, Las Vegas is better equipped to take on that money than a team like the Rams, who have been consistently rumored to be interested in Ramsey. Still, taking on all of Ramsey’s salary doesn’t make sense for the Raiders. 

Ultimately, Miami’s compensation will largely be dictated by how much of Ramsey’s salary it's willing to pay this season. The idea of “buying” a better pick isn’t overly appealing, but the Dolphins don’t have better options. 

The only thing that could change that is if a Super Bowl contender loses a starting cornerback during training camp and doesn’t feel good about its depth. 

That scenario at least gives the Dolphins some negotiating power to try and push for an early Day 3 or late Day 2 pick without having to take on a large chunk of Ramsey’s salary. 

So, as we’ve mentioned several times before, the Dolphins are better off waiting to trade Ramsey, even if the rumors remain a distraction.

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