The Pittsburgh Steelers made a major addition on Monday, trading Minkah Fitzpatrick to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith, with the teams swapping late-round picks in 2027 as well. While Ramsey is a nice addition to the defense, Colin Cowherd still thinks the Steelers aren’t prioritizing their offense enough. He specifically compares them to the way the New York Jets built around Aaron Rodgers.
“How do you spend your money?” Cowherd asked on FS1’s The Herd on Monday. “Chiefs, Rams, Eagles, they spend it on offense. They win every year. The Steelers and the Giants keep doubling down on defense. It’s weird. It’s almost as if the Steelers, trying to solve their offensive issues, looked at last year’s Jets and said, ‘Let’s do what they’re doing’… They [Jets] added Hasson Reddick, didn’t really need him, and then signed Aaron Rodgers… Probably don’t want to watch the New York Jets ever, and say, ‘I’ll take two heaping spoonfuls of what the New York Jets are doing’. That’s what the Steelers did this morning.”
Trading for Jalen Ramsey is a major move that is sure to draw plenty of reactions. This is a confusing one from Cowherd.
Cowherd’s disdain with the Steelers’ defensive spending is well-known. However, it’s not as if the move is without reason. Coming into the offseason, cornerback was potentially the biggest weakness on the defense. Joey Porter Jr. has shown plenty of potential during his young career, but needs to be more consistent. That’s why the Steelers brought in Darius Slay earlier this offseason, and now Jalen Ramsey.
However, his comparison to the Jets might be even more strange. New York did have its own issues with Rodgers, that’s for sure. However, adding a star cornerback is certainly not the same way New York built around him. If anything, the Jets added more to their offense and even brought in Rodgers’ friend at receiver in Allen Lazard.
There’s still plenty of offseason left, and the Steelers are clearly staying busy. The biggest hole on the roster is Pittsburgh’s lack of a true WR2, which could still be addressed. However, adding Ramsey is not the best comparison to the way New York built around Rodgers.
Ramsey’s addition makes the cornerback room stronger, but we’ll have to see how the defense looks. In DeShon Elliot and Juan Thornhill, the Steelers do still have a decent safety duo. However, Ramsey can play there, and the Steelers may use him in a few different ways.
This move might not push the Steelers straight into Super Bowl contention. However, with an aging quarterback and questions on offense, it’s never a bad idea to make the defense stronger. That’s exactly what the Steelers tried to do by trading for Jalen Ramsey.