The Miami Dolphins have made the move that everyone expected them to finalize before the 2025 season, as relations with future Hall of Fame cornerback Jalen Ramsey had deteriorated to the point where they needed to trade him away and get some assets in return.
Miami traded away both Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers. While they did bring back an All-Pro safety in Minkah Fitzpatrick, it's impossible to argue that the 53-man Dolphins roster is better now than it was before the Ramsey trade was made.
The Dolphins now head into the 2025 season with questions about their quarterback's ceiling, the worst tight end and cornerback rooms in the league, and a Mike McDaniel-led coaching staff that can't afford to stomach one more season without some headway being made in the playoffs.
The Ramsey trade may not seem like a complete white flag-waive, but it certainly isn't helping the Dolphins compete in the AFC East from an immediate point of view. Without Ramsey, the defense could be poor enough to get McDaniel and GM Chris Grier let go ahead of a proper full-scale rebuild.
Dolphins set the stage for rebuild after 2025 with Jalen Ramsey trade
Miami's defense had already lost Jevon Holland in free agency, and trading Ramsey will now put players like Storm Duck, the much-maligned second-round pick Cam Smith, and UDFA Isaiah Johnson in prominent positions alongside Kader Kohou. The lack of depth in this area is tough for Bill Belichick to overcome, let alone McDaniel.
One year after Smith caught 88 passes and emerged as the key tertiary option in the passing game, Miami has now traded away their Pro Bowl starter and lost Durham Smythe to the Chicago Bears in free agency. The current starter would be the winner of a Pharoah Brown/Julian Hill competition that would not seem out of place on the UFL's Birmingham Stallions.
If Miami is around the .500 mark and misses the playoffs, that will now mark four years in a row where McDaniel failed to break through and a full decade without a postseason win for Grier. With many expensive stars departing, the Dolphins would have the perfect excuse to press the big red button and blow this roster to smithereens.
The Dolphins will always have a very creative offense with McDaniel at the sticks, but this roster doesn't have the horsepower needed to compete with some of the other big names in the AFC after this trade.