Jalen Ramsey’s Time in Miami was a Failure

After over two months of the initial reports that Jalen Ramsey and the Dolphins had agreed to part ways, a trade finally came to fruition, landing them Minkah Fitzpatrick while also trading away Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith. However, I won’t talk about the return or Jonnu’s departure in Miami; I’ll focus on why Jalen Ramsey’s time in Miami was an absolute failure.

Ramsey arrived in a blockbuster on March 12, 2023, and it accelerated Miami’s window of contention. The Dolphins were coming off a strong first year with Mike McDaniel at the helm, which ended in disappointment with a Tua concussion that kept him unavailable for the first Dolphins playoff game since 2016. However, with the addition of Ramsey, they were poised to have one of the best cornerback duos, as Ramsey was joining Xavien Howard, who had notched three consecutive Pro Bowl berths.

Additionally, the Dolphins had made a rare splashy staff signing, as they’d brought over Vic Fangio, who became the highest-paid coordinator in the NFL.

Through no fault of Ramsey’s, he got hurt and underwent a full meniscus repair that was expected to keep him out until December. During the midst of what had been some of the best Dolphins football in 2023, Ramsey returned a full month before expected and debuted against the Patriots. He recorded an interception in his debut.

Two weeks later, he’d record a pair of interceptions, including one that iced the game for Miami. Unfortunately, that was the peak of Jalen’s time in Miami, and it went downhill from there.

As Miami began to struggle late in the year, the conversations quickly revolved around the fact that Jalen Ramsey wasn’t traveling and shadowing the opposing team’s number-one threat.

This came to light after DeAndre Hopkins went off for 124 yards as Tennessee came back to defeat Miami in gut-wrenching fashion on Monday Night Football.

Soon after that, Xavien Howard would suffer a season-ending injury, ending the highly anticipated partnership of corners with a total of seven games played together. After a disappointing playoff performance, in which Kansas City’s top receiver went off for 130 yards, the Dolphins made some changes.

Following the season, the Dolphins let go of secondary coaches Sam Madison and Renaldo Hill, while allowing disgruntled defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to leave and take a job in Philadelphia. The Miami Herald’s Omar Kelly reported earlier this year that Jalen Ramsey’s antics directly resulted in Sam Madison losing his job in Miami.