Looking at how Jalen Ramsey would fit on the 49ers, and breaking down the financial ramifications it would cost to acquire the former All-Pro.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweeted the Miami Dolphins and seven-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey are mutually set to explore trade options. Rapoport added, “It wouldn’t be a surprise if he played elsewhere in 2025.”
Jalen Ramsey’s contract is affordable
Ramsey is not even one year removed from a contract extension he signed in September 2024. As Rapoport noted, he’s due $25.1 million fully guaranteed this season. That would scare most teams away from paying the 30-year-old All-Pro, until you realize the actual salary cap ramifications of what it would cost to acquire Ramsey.
It’s a unique contract structure, the way Ramsey’s bonuses are structured in the deal. There are almost annual restructures that are already pre-structured in the contract.
The Dolphins would be the ones taking on the brunt of Ramsey’s contract if he’s traded. They’d have a 25.2 million cap hit in 2025, leaving the team that acquires Ramsey with a $5.92 million cap hit in 2025. That number more than tripled in 2026 to $18.29 million, and it continues to grow over the final two years to $20.05 million in 2027 and $31.19 million in 2028.
This is also the final year that Ramsey has any guaranteed money remaining on his contract. So, financially, it’s a deal the 49ers can make work.
Jalen Ramsey has ties to the 49ers
The Jacksonville Jaguars selected Ramsey No. 5 overall in the 2016 NFL Draft. That was the final year Gus Bradley, who is now the assistant head coach on the 49ers, was the head coach in Jacksonville. That season, the Jaguars also had a linebackers coach, Robert Saleh, on their coaching staff. If anybody knows what type of player Ramsey is, it’s Bradley and Saleh. They’ve seen him practice every day, including his habits, leadership, and intangibles, which Ramsey brings to a locker room that you wouldn’t be able to see until you have a player in the building.
Ramsey’s fit with the 49ers
The 49ers would have Ramsey when he’s 31, 32, 33, and 34, before his contract voids in 2028. Of course, they can always tinker with his contract if he shows signs of slowing down.
Going into the regular season without an established veteran in the secondary should be mildly concerning for Saleh and the Niners. Ramsey could help show players like Renardo Green the ropes of what it takes to be a pro and perform at a high level in this league. He’d also match, if not exceed, Deommodore Lenoir’s energy and trash talk.
Ramsey played 728 of his 1,027 snaps out wide at cornerback, while occasionally lining up in the slot. He’d allow Lenoir to remain at nickel.
Ramsey will enter his 10th year as a pro in 2025. There are zero signs of him slowing down. He started and played in all 17 games last season. Ramsey had 12 tackles for loss, which would have been second on the roster behind Nick Bosa.
Ramsey allowed a completion percentage of 54.2 last year, and broke up nine of his 48 targets, while intercepting two, compared to three touchdowns allowed. The veteran has seen it all and played in multiple schemes. Ramsey was in the top 20 in coverage snaps last year. He was tied for eighth in pass breakups in man coverage, allowing the fifth-lowest passer rating in man coverage — one spot behind Lenoir.
What compensation would it take to acquire Ramsey?
A cornerback on the wrong side of 30 who just signed an extension in September and was disgruntled by the end of the year isn’t fetching the Dolphins anything higher than a third-round pick.
The 49ers’ own picks Nos. 75 and 100 in the third round and two picks in each of the fourth and fifth rounds. Packaging multiple Day 3 picks or simply giving Miami their special compensatory pick should be all it takes for Miami to agree to a deal if their intent is to move on from Ramsey.
We’re talking about one of the better cornerbacks in the NFL, who is unquestionably an upgrade at the position for the 49ers and also is a need. Ramsey would help the Niners avoid using an early pick on a cornerback, and allow them to replenish the talent in the trenches.
He’s absolutely the kind of player the 49ers should be interested in, especially if we’re talking about a third-rounder.