“Not Surprised That He Got Traded”: Ex-Dolphins GM Weighs In on Jalen Ramsey’s Intriguing Trade to the Steelers

A surprising trade was announced this morning between the Miami Dolphins and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Dolphins are sending Jalen Ramsey, Jonnu Smith, and a 2027 seventh-round pick to the Steelers in exchange for Minkah Fitzpatrick and a 2027 seventh-round pick as well. This is one mega, mega deal, so naturally, it caught the attention of a former Dolphins GM.

Essentially, the trade is a defensive star swap between the two sides. Miami is getting a star safety who has made three All-Pro teams, and Pittsburgh is getting a star cornerback with Super Bowl experience. Additionally, Jonnu Smith should be a solid tight end addition after a career year last season that earned him a Pro Bowl nod.

Upon hearing the trade, many were left surprised by the players involved. But not former Dolphins GM Mike Tannenbaum. He just expected a different destination.

“Not surprised that he got traded, that was well reported. A lot of us thought he was going to the Rams at some point. They were looking for a corner; he had been there. You heard Sean McVay say that was certainly a possibility,” Tannenbaum said on First Take.  ⁠

Ramsey was traded to the LA Rams in 2019 and stayed with them until 2022. In 2021, he won his first career Super Bowl with the team as their standout cornerback. It wouldn’t have been surprising to see him traded back to the club.

But this move is very unlike the Steelers, which is why most of us are surprised. They rarely go all-in on a season. Yet the addition of Aaron Rodgers has opened a brief window of opportunity, and they want to strike while the iron is hot.

“This is another interesting move by Pittsburgh. They obviously acquired DK Metcalf, gave up a second-round pick. $30 million for a 41-year-old quarterback. This is an all-in move, very atypical of Pittsburgh, very intriguing,” Tannenbaum said.

The Steelers don’t often involve themselves in splash trades during the offseason. However, that’s all they’ve been involved with this time around. So far, they’ve traded for Metcalf and Ramsey, and even traded away George Pickens. They’ve also signed Darius Slay and Aaron Rodgers. It certainly seems like they’re all in.

But to analysts like Dan Graziano, this recent move doesn’t move the needle much.

“Jalen Ramsey, obviously a great player. But my concern about the Steelers’ offense is the age on it. And I don’t see how that helps this concern… I don’t see it as something that takes them past Cincinnati or Baltimore,” Graziano said.

In 2024, the average roster age for a Steelers player was 26.81 years. It was the highest in the NFL. Now, with the additions of 41-year-old Rodgers, 34-year-old Slay, and 30-year-old Ramsey, that average has undoubtedly climbed even higher.

The other analysts on the show thought of the move from a different perspective. Most notably, Mike Tomlin’s perspective. 

“This is still going to be a miracle coaching job by Tomlin. He’s going to have to pull another rabbit out of his hat to get them in contention,” David Dennis Jr. said.

Tomlin has an incredible streak of 18 consecutive non-losing seasons for Pittsburgh. There have been times when it’s felt like a moot point. But now with a competitive roster for the first time in what feels like years, maybe the “stick-to-it-ivness” of Tomlin’s winning ways will finally pay off.

All in all, the winner of this deal feels like Pittsburgh, at least for now. On paper, they look like a menacing defense to match up against. If they can re-sign TJ Watt, too, oh boy, offenses are going to have nightmares after facing them.

But at the same time, Miami got a great addition in Fitzpatrick. They also capitalized on a career year by Smith in a season where they expected nothing and traded him at peak value. If the Steelers flop, the Dolphins could end up looking like the winners by the end of the 2025–26 season.