Denver Broncos
One team who makes a ton of sense in terms of need, scheme, and cap space is the Denver Broncos. With defensive guru Vic Fangio in charge, the team is going all-in on building a defense. Right now their secondary is somewhat up in the air. In the offseason, they signed Kareem Jackson to start at safety and Bryce Callahan to start at nickel, but Chris Harris Jr. and Justin Simmons are both free agents after the season. Harris Jr. is likely gone and their other starting cornerback is Isaac Yiadom. Yiadom is just a second-year player and has been inconsistent for the Broncos. Ramsey would be a quick, long-term fix and lessen the blow of losing Harris Jr. going forward.
In Fangio’s defensive scheme, Ramsey would predominantly be playing man coverage. Given Fangio’s aggressive and creative defensive play-calling, there’s a good chance Ramsey would have the opportunity to shadow top targets. Throw in the need for a franchise player in the secondary and the team having over $60 million in projected cap space in 2020 with no major player’s due extensions, and it’s a match made in heaven. What is John Elway willing to give up for Ramsey? If he believes in Fangio and thinks Drew Lock is the future at quarterback, then major draft capital with Yiadom would make sense to get a deal done. It’s worth noting they were in the mix for Fitzpatrick.
Seattle Seahawks
Another team that was reportedly in the Minkah Fitzpatrick sweepstakes was the Seattle Seahawks. After losing out on him to Pittsburgh, they could potentially turn their attention to Ramsey. The Seahawks no longer have the Legion of Boom, but they could begin to rebuild it as they gear up for another playoff run. They’re usually a contender and Pete Carroll always has the defense humming. Ramsey could be the piece to make them an elite unit once again. They’ve shown they have no fear making moves after adding Jadeveon Clowney in August. Thanks to how little they gave up to acquire Clowney, they have the draft capital to bring in Ramsey.
It’s hard not to draw some comparisons between Ramsey and Richard Sherman. Sherman was the face of the Legion of Boom when he was a Seahawk and became the best cornerback in the league. Carroll knows how big a difference that type of player can make to a defense. One issue for Ramsey and the Seahawks though could be his desire to predominantly play man-to-man. In 2018 the Seahawks were a heavy zone team, but the addition of Ramsey could change how they scheme the defense. Both Shaquill Griffin and Tre Flowers have been the Seahawks go-to outside cornerbacks the last two seasons, so adding Ramsey could mean flipping one of them with draft capital to the Jaguars. It seems unlikely that John Schneider would make a move for Ramsey, but the Seahawks would be the most interesting landing spot.
