Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey has garnered a reputation as being one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL. No matter who has played for, the No. 5 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft has always gotten the job done.
However, Jalen Ramsey is coming off a down year, by his standards, in 2023. He was able to play in only 10 games after battling injuries and he had one of the least productive seasons of his career.
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The Miami Dolphins acquired him during the offseason from the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for a third-round pick and tight end Hunter Long. Miami hoped he would be the missing piece to help get their defense over the hump, but that wasn’t the case.
According to PFF, the 66.4 overall defensive grade Jalen Ramsey had in 2023 was the worst of his career by a wide margin. His previous low was in 2019 when he played for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Rams, recording a 71.5.
His 66.3 coverage grad was also a career-low, as the injuries and adjustment to a new scheme did Jalen Ramsey in. However, as shared by Jared Dubin of CBS Sports, the Miami Dolphins didn’t use their star acquisition correctly.
Despite his underwhelming performance in 2023, Dubin has high expectations for Jalen Ramsey in 2024. Heading into the season, Dubin has ranked the Florida State star as the No. 3 cornerback in the NFL.
“Ramsey wasn’t used the right way last season. Let’s start there. Playing almost exclusively at left corner is not the best way to utilize his vast skill set.
We’ve seen in the past that moving around, playing in the slot, shadowing No. 1s, and just generally being in position to blow things up is the way to go. And that will likely be the case under new coordinator Anthony Weaver, who comes to Miami by way of Baltimore. We should see Ramsey at the peak of his powers in 2024,” Dubin wrote.
The Miami Dolphins have arguably the most explosive offense in the NFL. If they want to be true contenders in the AFC and challenge for a Super Bowl, they need their defense to step up.
Jalen Ramsey will be one of the players key to that unit finding success. With their pass rush hit hard by injuries, the secondary is going to need to elevate their performance to help compensate.
As Dubin noted, Anthony Weaver will bring a new look to the Miami Dolphins’ defense. Given the philosophies he learned with the Baltimore Ravens, Jalen Ramsey should be put in a position to succeed more in 2023 than he did in 2024.