Are the Rams Cooling on Potential Miami Dolphins-Jalen Ramsey Trade?

The Los Angeles Rams are the leader in the clubhouse to trade for embattled Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey, but there doesn’t appear to be much positive movement on a deal. 

Rams Coach Sean McVay spoke to the media during the team’s training camp in Hawaii and gave a small update on where negotiations stand. 

“Usually, those are scenarios and situations that you have to have plans in place prior to executing some of the decisions that have occurred,” McVay said. “Definitely don’t want to rule anything out because we’re always open-minded to onboarding and acquiring quality players and people like him, if we’re able to do that, but there would be some obstacles that are real that are in the place of maybe preventing that from occurring.”

McVay’s message hasn’t changed much on the issue, but this answer does seem at least slightly less optimistic than the one he gave before OTAs and training camp.

Of course, the Rams can’t come out and say they want Ramsey no matter what. That would cede all leverage to the Dolphins, who currently have none. 

It’s easier to take McVay’s quote at face value because there are real obstacles when it comes to trading for Ramsey. Any team acquiring Ramsey would have to take on $21 million this season.

There’s a good chance the Dolphins will have to pay some of that salary to facilitate a deal, but the Rams have just $21.8 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap. 

The Rams likely don’t want Ramsey to take up practically all of their remaining space, and the Dolphins likely have little interest in paying a big chunk of Ramsey’s salary just for him to play elsewhere. 

The other obstacle to consider is compensation. Miami getting anything more than a Day 3 selection for Ramsey feels like a pipe dream, and the Rams don’t have a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NFL draft. 

Los Angeles has two fifth and sixth-round picks, but those selections aren’t good enough to force Miami to make this trade right away. 

The Rams could send a future selection, but for a team whose winning window is tied to 37-year-old Matthew Stafford, holding onto future picks to build out a roster around a new quarterback might be the better strategy. 

The Rams have two first-round picks in the 2026 draft, and this year’s quarterback group is expected to be a step up from last year’s. That’s a lot of projection, but it would explain the potential impasse for a deal. 

The Dolphins are in an incredibly tough spot. 

Because they’ve been so upfront about wanting to move Ramsey, and the relationship between the team and player has gotten so bad, they’ve lost all leverage in trade negotiations. Miami will be more desperate to make a deal than any team they call. 

The only thing that could change that is a preseason injury to a contending team’s top cornerback, which is why we’ve written that the Dolphins should hold on to Ramsey for a while. 

Another factor that would benefit Miami is a more robust market. There have been grumblings about other teams getting involved in negotiations, but there aren’t many teams that have the space to absorb Ramsey’s deal and appeal to the cornerback. 

The Dolphins don’t have to get Ramsey’s approval before trading him, but any well-run team acquiring him would want it before finishing the deal. 

Teams like the Panthers, Chargers, and Raiders could at least make some sense. 

Carolina has $18 million in cap space, a need at cornerback, and their fourth-round pick. The Panthers are making a push to be more competitive this season, but would Ramsey want to bet one of his twilight seasons on a team without a proven track record? 

The Raiders fall into a similar category. They’ve got the cap space and a need, but play in a brutal division and aren’t exactly a proven winner, even if Pete Carroll’s track record is good. 

The Chargers have the cap space, draft picks, and need at cornerback to acquire Ramsey. And besides the Rams, they’ve had the most recent success. The question is whether the Chargers feel like Ramsey is the last piece of the puzzle on a defense that played fairly well with undervalued cornerbacks last season. 

Ultimately, the Dolphins just have to wait and hope something breaks their way. Moving on from Ramsey a year early might be better for the locker room, but it won’t be a win in the compensation or on-field department.

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