Six-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey admitted he likes what he sees developing with respect to the Miami Dolphins’ secondary.
With four-time Pro Bowl selection Xavien Howard in tow, Ramsey was asked if the Dolphins boast the best cornerback duo and the top secondary in the NFL during his introductory press conference in Miami.
“I believe so. That’s just the type of energy I bring, the type of confidence I always have,” Ramsey said on Thursday, one day after his trade from the Los Angeles Rams became official.
“On paper, this is the best group that I’ve been a part of, and I feel like I’ve been a part of some good groups in Jacksonville and also L.A. But on paper, I feel like this is the best one. Obviously, with me and X on the outside, and then you’ve got the young guys — you’ve got Jevon (Holland), we just got DeShon Elliott, Brandon (Jones), Kader (Kohou). So I think we’ve got a good secondary on paper if you look at it.
“But we’ve got to put the work in. We can speak it as much as we want to, but we’re gonna have to go out there and prove it, and that’s what we’ll plan to do. But it’s not just about us. It’s the whole defense and the whole team. I think we can do something special if we put that work in and be as one.”
Ramsey, however, was careful not to compare the potential of his tandem with Howard to that of Patrick Surtain and Sam Madison, who made a combined seven Pro Bowls as Miami teammates from 1998-2004. Madison is now Miami’s cornerbacks coach and passing game specialist.
“We trying to be the best, man. We ain’t trying to really worry about comparing ourselves with anybody else,” Ramsey said. “We trying to be ourselves. We’ve had some success in our individual careers up until this point. We plan to have more success now together in the same secondary as a duo. … We just going to get after it. And then when it’s all said and done, then we can talk about — we can go over all of that and we can go over all of what people say.
“We’ll keep the receipts, and we’ll go back over all of that when it’s all said done, after the fact. That’s what I’ve been doing.”
Ramsey, 28, had 88 tackles, four interceptions and two forced fumbles in 17 games (all starts) with the Rams last season. Los Angeles did not make the playoffs last season, although Ramsey helped them to a Super Bowl title the previous campaign.
Ramsey has 452 tackles, 19 interceptions and six forced fumbles in 108 career games (107 starts) with the Jaguars and Rams since Jacksonville drafted him No. 5 overall in 2016.
–Field Level Media