Jalen Ramsey has gone above and beyond the potential that made him the fifth overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. In eight-plus seasons in the league, he’s been a nine-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro.
He’s also been one of the NFL’s more outspoken players. Back in 2019, a confrontation with then-Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone led him to issue a trade request just two weeks into the season. The Jags acceded fewer than two weeks later, sending him to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for a pair of first round draft picks and a fourth-rounder.
That move paid off for Ramsey and the Rams. He returned to All-Pro form and was a key piece of Los Angeles’s 2021 Super Bowl champion roster.
It also allowed him some minor revenge against his former team. As a cross-conference opponent, he had only a single opportunity to face the franchise that failed to maximize the draft picks it gleaned through his departure (they were spent on K’Lavon Chaisson and Travis Etienne). But Ramsey put in work that afternoon in 2021, allowing just one completion on four Trevor Lawrence passes thrown his way. He knocked down one of those attempts and recovered a fumble in a 37-7 Rams win.
Ramsey’s next showdown with a former employer won’t have the same acrimony of his game against the Jags. While he was happy to leave a Rams team that looked to be in the midst of a rebuild:
I prayed for this specifically for about a month & now it’s happening! 🙏🏾@MiamiDolphins LETSGO! 🧡
— Jalen Ramsey (@jalenramsey) March 12, 2023
there weren’t public signs of frustration and displeasure otherwise. There’s no doubt he’ll be motivated to shine in front of his former teammates, but a big win over the Rams probably won’t have the same meaning as trashing Jacksonville did three years earlier.