Jalen Ramsey’s thumbs aren’t as quick as his feet. But close.
News of a contract extension for Chargers star defensive end Joey Bosa had barely hit the Internet when the Rams’ cornerback tapped out his reaction on Twitter.
“2016 Draft Class 1-4 gettin paid & I love it kus they all deserve it!!” the Rams cornerback wrote Tuesday night.
2016 Draft Class 1-4 gettin paid & I love it kus they all deserve it!! God’s timing & blessings are truly great and they are better than what we could even imagine. As His children, what He has for US is truly special!!
— Jalen Ramsey (@jalenramsey) July 29, 2020
Ramsey wasn’t just dishing out compliments to the top four picks in the 2016 NFL draft – Rams quarterback Jared Goff, Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz, Bosa and Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott – whose contract extensions the past two summers have an average value of nearly $27 million a season.
He was dishing out compliments knowing – and knowing that interested readers know – Ramsey was the fifth pick in that draft and is up for a contract extension of his own.
This wasn’t quite like a year ago when Ramsey, then a Jacksonville Jaguar, arrived at training camp in an armored truck to deliver the message that he was ready to get paid. But close.
The Rams really need no reminder that Ramsey is going into the final year of his rookie contract. As are wide receiver Cooper Kupp and safety John Johnson, as well as tight end Gerald Everett, wide receiver Josh Reynolds and linebacker Samson Ebukam. Other Rams who could be free agents after 2020 include cornerback Troy Hill, offensive lineman Austin Blythe, outside linebacker Leonard Floyd and long snapper Jake McQuaide.
And the Rams don’t need to be reminded of Ramsey’s value after trading away their 2020 and 2021 first-round draft picks and their 2021 fourth-rounder to acquire the three-time Pro Bowler in October.
On Tuesday, Ramsey was named No. 37 in the annual NFL Top 100 rankings voted by the league’s players. Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald was No. 3, and Kupp made the list for the first time at No. 89.
Ramsey was third among cornerbacks, and at age 25, he has a bigger future than No. 9 Stephon Gilmore of New England, who is 29, and No. 28 Richard Sherman of San Francisco, who is 32.
Ramsey and Rams coach Sean McVay haven’t publicly addressed the negotiations since May. Both were reassuring then, Ramsey saying, “It’ll get handled” and he would report to training camp on time, McVay saying Ramsey’s agent and team management have had “a lot of dialogue.”
Kupp said, in April, of his contract negotiations: “There’s so much is going on in the world right now. It’s really not a priority at this time.”
With training camp in Thousand Oaks opening in the coming days, expect the subject to come up – especially the Ramsey negotiations, since his next contract could set records for defensive backs.
Among the questions:
• What is Ramsey worth? The highest-salaried cornerbacks are Philadelphia’s Darius Slay ($16.7 million a year on a three-year contract) and Miami’s Byron Jones ($16.5 million a year, five years). Ramsey is four years younger than Slay, two years younger than Jones.
Who says Ramsey should get more? None other than Slay, who responded to Bosa’s $27 million-a-year deal by tweeting Tuesday that a top cornerback “better be getting 22-23 come next yr.”
CB better be getting 22-23 come next yr lol a lockdown CB don’t just fall off trees
— Darius Slay (@bigplay24slay) July 29, 2020
A more reasonable guess is $18-20 million. Under ordinary circumstances. But nothing is ordinary now.
• How does the coronavirus pandemic affect this? Pandemic conditions will crush the salary cap. The $198.2 million-per-team cap for 2020 would fall to $175 million for 2021 under a reported agreement between the NFL and the NFL Players Association to spread out the effects of 2020 revenue losses over several seasons. That complicates things for any team looking at new star contracts.
• Where will the money come from? The Rams’ current salary-cap space is only $5.1 million, according to OverTheCap.com. Jason Fitzgerald, an analyst for that website, wrote in May – before factoring in the pandemic’s impact – that the Rams’ cap space could rise to $39.8 million in 2021. But that would require restructuring current contracts or continuing to cut well-paid players as the Rams have done this year.
• When could a deal be done? The Rams’ big, recent extensions were announced in July (2018 for Todd Gurley for four years and $14.4 million per, and Brandin Cooks for five years and $16.2 million per), August (2018 for Donald at six years and $22.5 million per) and early September (2019 for Jared Goff for four yeas and $33.5 million per). It’s ideal to conclude negotiations that way, before they become in-season distractions or valued players start to consider free agency.
They’re talking. But are they close? We’ll see.
