Dolphins Made The Most Out of Trade with Pittsburgh

When I received the alert on my phone last week that the Miami Dolphins had traded Jalen Ramsey to the Pittsburgh Steelers, I thought, ‘Okay, the situation is finally over.’ Now, what did the team get back to move?

More details emerged that Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith were traded to the Steelers for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, and the teams swapped late-round picks in 2027, with the Dolphins receiving a 5th-round pick and the Steelers a 7th-round pick. 

Many people have given their opinions on the trade, and I feel the Dolphins got what they could in this deal. It does weaken the cornerback position, no question, as there is really no proven player on the boundary other than Kader Kohu, but he’s more of a nickel back, so they will get burned by inexperience. 

However, the Dolphins acquired Fitzpatrick, whom they drafted in the first round in 2018, then foolishly traded a year later due to issues with then-head coach Brian Flores, a Pro Bowl player and someone with experience who can help stabilize the safety position. Am I skeptical about the Steelers trading him after trading a first-round pick just 5 years ago for him?

Yes, I am a little, but Fitzpatrick is 29 years old and should have a couple of good seasons in him. A point that his numbers are down with only one interception in the last two years, and his pass coverage metrics, but you can’t judge it based on numbers alone. Fitzpatrick is considered a leader and a stabilizing player. Would you like more interceptions? Sure, but numbers aren’t the whole story.

He also had almost 100 tackles last year, as well, and the Dolphins need a tackler at the position. People complained when the Dolphins lost Jevion Holland in free agency, but I felt it was time to go because last year, he didn’t do anything that much outside of the forced fumble in the opener.

He didn’t have an interception last year, and he was frequently out of position at times, so I questioned whether he was giving it his all. He had 62 tackles, but he had a lot of missed tackles as well. The Dolphins are getting Fitzpatrick with this year and next left on his contract, and if he has really declined, they can release him next year and not pay his $17 million salary. I just don’t think Fitzpatrick has declined that much, and I find it hard to believe, but we will find out this year.  

The Dolphins found a team in the Steelers willing to pay the rest of Ramsey’s contract, which I was really surprised the Steelers did, considering they didn’t have to, and Ramsey is in his early 30s and is starting to show some signs of a slow decline. The Steelers don’t typically pay players in their 30s, so this seems like a desperate move by them, especially when you consider there was not another team willing to do that.