One of the biggest player-for-player trades in recent NFL history has just gone down. It happens to involve one of the New York Jets’ AFC East rivals and their Week 1 opponent in 2025.
The Miami Dolphins are sending seven-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey and 2024 Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers. In exchange, the Dolphins will receive five-time Pro Bowl safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who was drafted by Miami in 2018.
How does this move affect the Jets?
Jets’ Matchups vs. Dolphins
Out with Ramsey, in with the youth
The Jets will miss having Jalen Ramsey in the AFC East, especially Garrett Wilson.
At 30 years old, Ramsey began showing signs of decline in 2024. He allowed a mediocre 93.5 passer rating on throws into his coverage, which ranked 47th among 92 qualified cornerbacks (min. 500 snaps). Ramsey, usually known for his superb tackling, also missed a career-high 14 tackles.
In two matchups against the Jets, Ramsey was scorched by Aaron Rodgers and Garrett Wilson. When targeting Ramsey, Rodgers went 10 of 13 for 197 yards. Wilson was particularly successful against Ramsey, securing 7 of 9 targets for 137 yards and six first downs. On top of that, Wilson drew a pass interference penalty on Ramsey to convert a third down.
Without Ramsey, the Dolphins will turn to a field of young, unproven players at the cornerback position. Kader Kohou is solidified as a good starter in the slot, but the two outside spots will be up for grabs.
Miami’s remaining cornerback unit appears as follows:
- Storm Duck
- Cam Smith
- Kader Kohou
- Ethan Bonner
- Artie Burns
- Kendall Sheffield
- Isaiah Johnson
- Jason Marshall (rookie, fifth round)
- Ethan Robinson (rookie, undrafted)
- BJ Adams (rookie, undrafted)
There isn’t much here for Miami to bank on. Most of these players have either not played in the NFL or have struggled when given opportunities.
Storm Duck was an undrafted free agent in 2024. He made the roster and played 359 defensive snaps, fourth among Miami’s corners, but he allowed a 104.2 passer rating into his coverage. Cam Smith has raw talent, as he was a second-round pick in 2023, but he’s struggled to get on the field (155 snaps in 21 games) and has been exploited when on it (119.3 passer rating allowed).
Miami is gambling that one of these players can emerge as an upgrade over the declining Ramsey. There is a chance that someone will step up and perform better against the Jets than Ramsey did last year, as the bar is low. At the same time, given how unproven this unit is, things could go equally poorly or worse.
Either way, Miami’s cornerback unit is left in a weak spot, creating an opportunity for Wilson and Justin Fields to feast in Weeks 4 and 14.
How will Smith be replaced?
Tight end Jonnu Smith will be missed in Miami. In 2024, Smith ranked second among tight ends in receiving touchdowns (8), fourth in receptions (88), and fourth in receiving yards (886), earning his first Pro Bowl trip at 29 years old.
Smith had a touchdown in each of his games against New York, including an overtime game-winner in Miami. Overall, Smith caught 12 of 16 targets for 90 yards against the Jets.
As with Ramsey, the Dolphins could have a hard time replacing Smith. The rest of their tight end unit appears as follows:
- Pharaoh Brown
- Julian Hill
- Tanner Conner
- Hayden Rucci
- Jalin Conyers (rookie, undrafted)
This unit has combined for three NFL touchdowns, all coming from Brown, who was drafted eight years ago.
Without a threat to worry about at tight end, the Jets can shift their coverage to the receiver duo of Tyreek Hill (assuming he doesn’t force his way out by Week 1) and Jaylen Waddle. Whether it’s free safety Andre Cisco or one of the starting linebackers (Jamien Sherwood and Quincy Williams), the Jets should have no problem shutting down Miami’s tight ends in one-on-one coverage, leaving more resources to shade toward Hill and Waddle.
However, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Dolphins are in the market for a new tight end after loving Smith, so this weakness could be addressed soon. Still, the bar to match Smith’s impact is very high.
Minkah Fitzpatrick’s return is a critical addition
While the losses of Ramsey and Smith leave Miami in dire straits at cornerback and tight end, the addition of Minkah Fitzpatrick fills a hole at safety that was arguably even more gaping than either of those spots currently are. Following the free agency loss of Jevon Holland to the Giants, Miami was prepared to start a backup-caliber duo at safety.
Before bringing back Fitzpatrick, the Dolphins’ projected starters at safety were Ifeatu Melifonwu and former Jets draft pick Ashtyn Davis. Melifonwu is a former third-round pick who disappointed in Detroit, starting only 13 games in four seasons while allowing a 100.2 passer rating. Davis, as Jets fans know, is a useful special teamer and sub-package player, but highly exploitable as a starting safety.
Fitzpatrick is a major upgrade. However, he has something to prove after a down year.
Like Ramsey, Fitzpatrick took a step back in 2024, allowing career-highs of five touchdowns and a 132.1 passer rating. This could be an outlier, though. Fitzpatrick is still just 28 years old, and over the previous two seasons, he allowed one touchdown and six interceptions on throws into his coverage. Fitzpatrick was also still one of the NFL’s best tackling safeties in 2024, missing just nine tackles on 1,084 defensive snaps.
Jets’ Matchup vs. Steelers
While this trade primarily affects the Jets through its impact on Miami, it is also important because of its effect on New York’s season opener. Pittsburgh’s two new pieces will make their Steelers debuts at MetLife Stadium.
Coming over to Pittsburgh, Ramsey is expected to join forces with Darius Slay as the Steelers’ starting cornerback duo on the outside. Pittsburgh hopes Ramsey can provide an upgrade over 2023 second-round pick Joey Porter Jr., who led all defensive players with 27 penalties over the last two seasons.
The Ramsey-Slay duo will have a combined age of 64 years old in Week 1. The hope for Pittsburgh is that experience can outweigh the negative effects of aging.
In 14 games for the Eagles last season, Slay still performed well. On throws into his coverage, Slay allowed a career-low 50% completion rate and a passer rating of just 78.3. However, it was his first season without an interception since his rookie year (although he would get one in the playoffs). He has also missed eight games over the past two seasons after missing just five over the previous six.
With former Steelers quarterback Justin Fields under center, it is nice for New York to know that neither of Pittsburgh’s starting cornerbacks were on the team last year, negating any potential advantage of the opposing DBs being familiar with Fields’ tendencies and timing. On the other side of the field, Sauce Gardner and Michael Carter II will be tapped into Aaron Rodgers’ habits.
The addition of Jonnu Smith might seem unnecessary at first, as the Steelers already had a solid starting tight end in Pat Freiermuth. However, having multiple high-quality tight ends is critical for an Arthur Smith-run offense that relies on multi-tight end packages. In 2024, Pittsburgh used 12 personnel (2 TE) at the 12th-highest rate (25.4%) and 13 personnel (3 TE) at the second-highest rate (15.1%).
With Smith and Freiermuth, the Steelers have one of the NFL’s best one-two punches at tight end, and their impact will be maximized in a tight end-centric scheme. The Jets’ linebackers and safeties will be tested in the underneath passing game.
The good news for New York is that Pittsburgh has opened an enormous void at safety. With Fitzpatrick headed back to Miami, the Steelers will be without the man who was the primary engine of takeaways in their secondary throughout the entire 2020s.
The current favorite to replace Fitzpatrick is veteran Juan Thornhill, whom the Steelers signed in free agency. Formerly a solid starter for the Chiefs, Thornhill struggled mightily for the Browns last season, allowing a 137.2 passer rating and missing a career-high 22.6% of his tackle attempts (worst among safeties).
With Thornhill in the back end and two 30-plus starters at cornerback, perhaps the Jets will look to open up their downfield passing game straight out of the gates. It is also worth noting that Pittsburgh will be implementing a plethora of new pieces into their secondary, so it will be the perfect time to test their back-end communication.
The AFC has just undergone a major shakeup, and as a result, three games on the Jets’ schedule suddenly look a whole lot different.