The New York Jets and the NFL world stopped on a dime this week with the blockbuster trade between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins.
All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith were shipped to the Steel City for veteran safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and a late-round pick swap. Miami saved significant cap space for the future, while Pittsburgh added key pieces to what they are hoping is a championship pursuit.
As is the case with any trade, the Jets are one of several teams to be affected by this trade, including some of their best players on the roster.
Garrett Wilson
This week’s news was fantastic for Garrett Wilson.
While Wilson cooked Jalen Ramsey last season (catching 7 of 9 targets for 137 yards against Ramsey’s coverage), the Dolphins now do not have a single cornerback who can measure up to his skill set. Storm Duck, Cam Smith, Ethan Bonner, and Artie Burns are among the players who will compete to start on the outside for Miami’s secondary.
With Ramsey and the Steelers set to face New York in the season opener, Wilson could still have a huge game in Week 1 as well.
Mason Taylor
Ramsey is a candidate to move to safety this year. At the very least, he is expected to take some snaps there.
If that ends up happening, the Jets should look to target the tight end position early and often as Ramsey acclimates to a new position. That’s where New York’s second-round tight end could come into play.
Mason Taylor has the size and athleticism to be the kind of matchup nightmare that the Steelers won’t be able to handle in their first game with a revamped secondary.
Sauce Gardner
Believe it or not, Sauce Gardner is affected in a major way by the deal that sent Ramsey to Pittsburgh.
As part of this trade to Pittsburgh, Ramsey is getting a pay bump of $1.5 million, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
The new $26.6 million average leaves Ramsey as the second-highest paid cornerback in football behind Derek Stingley Jr. ($30 million). Even if he moves to safety, the contract is set to only enhance Gardner’s push for his future extension with the Jets.
It always seemed like the Jets were going to have to give Gardner over $30 million per year. Ramsey’s new trade and deal only reinforced that thought.