Jacksonville Jaguars Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey has informed the Jacksonville Jaguars he wishes to be traded. Amidst his request to be dealt, here are five teams who could pursue Ramsey, plus five some insight on what a trade package could look like.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs’ offseason consisted of a big defensive shakeup. The spring and summer months saw the Chiefs hire a new defensive coordinator, release Eric Berry, trade Dee Ford, and acquire Frank Clark, among other moves. The Chiefs already have an amazing offense, but their defense has been quick to draw concerns. It’s not an awful unit, but as of now, they aren’t living up to their full potential. Perhaps they just don’t have the right pieces.
Kendall Fuller is currently Kansas City’s starting cornerback. Lined up alongside him are Charvarius Ward and Bashaud Breeland. Adding Jalen Ramsey would be an instant improvement to a unit that already has three interceptions in two games this season.
Kansas City has more than $22 million in cap space, a factor that is not an issue at all even for teams with less cap space, as Ramsey is on a rookie deal and will be paid just over $3.6 million this season. Jacksonville played against Kansas City Week 1, so trading him to Chiefs would allow the Jaguars to not have to worry about playing Ramsey this season.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a really interesting team to monitor right now. While they are certainly not the frontrunners for Ramsey, a not-quite-disappointing but certainly confusing start to the season by Dallas’ defensive unity should cause them to evaluate the options in front of them. The biggest question would surround whether or not Dallas has the assets to both acquire and extend Ramsey.
Newly-extended Byron Jones is currently Dallas’ starting cornerback, so any trade for Ramsey would bump him down to No. 2, which isn’t an ideal title for him but is certainly an ideal combination of elite defensive threats. Chidobe Awuzie is Dallas’ other starting cornerback, so he would lose his job to Jones if Ramsey was to be brought in.
Dallas has even more cap space than the Chiefs ($23.6 million to be exact), so there wouldn’t be a financial concern. What remains to be seen is whether or not they have the assets (most likely draft picks) to land Ramsey in the first place. It’s worth noting that they could compensate for a lesser draft pick haul by throwing in Awuzie, but it’s unclear if Jacksonville would have any interest in that.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles have a strong defensive line and a decent defensive secondary, but while a trade could crowd the defense more, it could also make the unit leaps and bounds better. If the Eagles find themselves in a situation where they trade for Ramsey, they could become the easy favorites to knock off the Cowboys in the NFC West. (Perhaps Jacksonville could use this to their advantage and start a bidding war between Philly and Dallas.)
Ronald Darby and Avonte Maddox have opened the season splitting time at the left and right cornerback positions. Any trade for Ramsey would surely move Maddox into a bench role and Darby into a second starting role behind Ramsey.
The Eagles’ cap space of more than $24 million exceeds that of the Cowboys and Chiefs, making them a quite possible landing spot.
Oakland Raiders
Any Oakland Raiders trade for Jalen Ramsey would probably just be more fun than reasonable after all that has gone on in Oakland this past offseason, but still, there is somewhat of a fit. The Raiders’ defense has been struggling and they are in an offensive-strong division that could see them be defeated by the Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers twice each.
Oakland’s current cornerback squad features Daryl Worley and Gareon Conley as their starters. Worley, 24, is in his fourth year in the league and Conley, also 24, is in his third year. Both of them had similar 2018 seasons and are off to similar starts in 2019, but Worley has more experience and slightly better numbers so he would likely keep his starting job should a Ramsey trade go down.
Oakland has just under $27 million in cap space after the Antonio Brown saga came to an end, so why not start a new saga, perhaps this time on a better note? Oakland would surely welcome Ramsey to their defense with open arms.
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers are off to a hot 2-0 start after wins against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cincinnati Bengals. While the two opponents they have faced so far aren’t necessarily top of the line competition, San Francisco has looked like a solid unit and they shouldn’t be ruled out until they’ve actually lost against several of the league’s better teams. Of course, a trade for Ramsey could make it so the 49ers don’t even dip that low.
The Niners’ starting cornerbacks right now are Richard Sherman and Ahkello Witherspoon. Sherman, a four-time Pro Bowler and three-time First-Team All-Pro, has plenty of experience and there’s no risk of him losing his starting job. (Of course, a trade for Ramsey would push him back to the No. 2 starter role.) Witherspoon, 24, is in his third year in the league and he, too, is off to a solid start to the season. He has five solo tackles and two assisted, plus an interception and five defended passes.
The biggest roadblock for the 49ers in their trade talks wouldn’t involve the Jaguars. It would involve the Niners. They have a crowded secondary and Ramsey, while elite and affordable with $21 million in cap space, would only crowd it more.
What Could a Trade Package Look Like?
The Jacksonville Jaguars are reportedly asking for two first-round picks in exchange for Ramsey and I would be shocked if they don’t receive those two assets. However, it doesn’t seem like they will trade Ramsey for those picks straight up. If they are getting two first-round picks, the Jaguars would likely need to package Ramsey with a mid-round pick or another player that fits the trade partner’s needs to swing a deal.
