Suddenly Trendy Vikings Bombshell Enters the Realm of Possibility
Pulling off a Jalen Ramsey trade would qualify as a Vikings bombshell. Any chance the deal actually occurs?
Well, we’re now working from within the realm of possibility, at least from a financial perspective. The world of NFL finances sees June 1st as an important day. A player can now be traded for cheaper, at least in terms of a team’s remaining dead cap funds for moving on from a player. That suddenly applicable dynamic makes the Miami Dolphins capable of moving on.
The Vikings Bombshell & The Jalen Ramsey Possibility
Recently, Cameron Wolfe offered an update on the way things were trending for Miami’s talented corner.
Consider the word from May 22nd: “I was told nothing is imminent, there have been conversations […] there’s interest.” Wolfe does to instruct us to “keep an eye on that July 1st date,” presumably referring to June 1st in a quick quip where he misspoke. There’s then a reference to Miami being committed to a trade: “For the Dolphins, they’re already planning to move on.”
As for specific teams, the Rams get mentioned alongside the Falcons and the Panthers. There is, however, a more general mention of “places where he has had coaches he has loved to play for in the past.” Any chance Kevin O’Connell — someone who, in fairness, operates on the other side of the ball — fits within that mix of respected coaches?
Some recent chatter has explored the possibility of Mr. Ramsey becoming a Viking.
Consider, for instance, just a quick thought from Dustin Baker in a recent piece: “Trades are also easier to negotiate financially after June 1st, so monitor that for Minnesota, too. Adofo-Mensah could swing a trade for a cornerback or tight end per current roster needs. A player like cornerback Jalen Ramsey has recently inhabited the team’s trade rumor mill.”
In fact, Baker dug into the topic at another point, doing so in response to NFL analysts participating in some purple dot connecting. Apparently, former NFL player Jason McCourty sees a fit in Minnesota, largely due to the presence of Brian Flores. The Vikings’ DC has a well-earned reputation for being a brilliant strategist who likes to use his players in creative ways, so the Ramsey add would be about equipping Mr. Flores with a high-level talent who can shine within Minnesota’s versatile defense.
Now, here is where the rubber meets the road. Getting beyond June 1st means that the Dolphins are now in a spot where trading away Jalen Ramsey is financially feasible. Moving the corner would mean welcoming $6,745,000 in dead money while freeing up $9,916,000 (in 2026, the Dolphins would get walloped with more dead cap funds).
What about the Vikings’ end of things? The cap calculator on Over the Cap helps us to answer that question.
The starting point for cap space is sitting at roughly $18.5 million, a decent number that recently saw a boost due to Garrett Bradbury’s post-June 1 release. What does putting Jalen Ramsey into the mix do? The cap calculator says that acquiring him would only have a $6.12 million cap cost, leaving Minnesota with north of $13.3 million in cap space.
The major downside is that the 2026 debt pile gets pushed up to more than $64.5 million.
True, it’s a problem for a different day and yet it’s one that will nevertheless be factoring into any decision that gets made today. Over and over again, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has confirmed a desire to compete right now while nevertheless protecting against undermining the future. The point, per the GM, is to compete on an annual basis, not just on a 2025 basis.
Previously, I’ve explored a trade for Jalen Ramsey, offering these thoughts: “The top-tier corner offers excellent size at 6’1″ and 208 pounds. Jeff Okudah and Dwight McGlothern offer similar size, but neither has the résumé of the Dolphin. Since getting picked at No. 5 back in 2016, Ramsey has won a Super Bowl, been a first-team All Pro three times, a Pro Bowler seven times, and finished as the runner-up for Defensive Rookie of the Year.”
Further: “Ramsey has proven to be a versatile player over the course of his career. For the most part, the corner has played along the outside, soaking up 6,387 snaps in the spot. However, he has also moved into the slot with some regularity, picking up 1,235 snaps in that spot. The cherry on top is his 660 snaps in the box (again, he has good size), his 125 snaps as a free safety, and his 124 snaps along the d-line.”
In other words, Jalen Ramsey is an excellent player who appears to be an excellent fit. Even better, he’s very publicly in the NFL’s trade chatter and is affordable (at least in the present moment).
Does the Vikings bombshell actually happen? If so, then expectations in Minnesota are going to skyrocket.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference, PFF, and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
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K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and Bluesky (@VikingsGazette). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.
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