Nine-year veteran cornerback Jalen Ramsey has seen his fair share of defensive schemes since he was drafted in 2016.
Last year, his first with the Miami Dolphins, he played for former defensive coordinator Vic Fangio and was less than pleased. As Anthony Weaver takes the reins, Ramsey thinks his approach is different from Fangio and his other past defensive coordinators.
“It’s been cool,” Ramsey said Wednesday. “It’s different than the defenses I’ve played in the past years which is a good thing, can be a really good thing.”
Weaver has spent two decades in the NFL, seven as a player and 12 as a coach. He spent the past three seasons in Baltimore, with the last two as assistant head coach and defensive line coach for the Ravens.
Fangio and the Dolphins decided to mutually part ways this offseason after spending just one year together, and Miami is now moving on to its third defensive coordinator in as many years. The team has more than a month until the season starts, and the defense has more work to do, but Ramsey believes Weaver will put him in the best position.
“The scheme is different, the way he wants to call plays is going to be very different,” Ramsey said. “I’ve heard that [I’m the ultimate chess piece] a few times in my career, though, and that’s only really happened a couple times. I’ll let everything unfold, and whatever is best for the defense at the end of the day, I’m sure — I hope is what position I’ll be in.”
And if Ramsey is used appropriately, he believes his team will reap the benefits.
“It allows me to showcase all of my skill set, all of my abilities,” Ramsey said. “It allows teams to not always be able to dictate where I am. It allows me to be more involved in the game and the gameplan and not get bored out there on the field. I think it opens up a lot of opportunities and plays for other people, as well, when I get to be versatile and do different things.”
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