{"id":172394,"date":"2025-07-01T07:30:21","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T07:30:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/172394\/"},"modified":"2025-07-01T07:30:21","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T07:30:21","slug":"steelers-have-coveted-ramsey-since-2016-nfl-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/172394\/","title":{"rendered":"Steelers have coveted Ramsey since 2016 NFL Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

PITTSBURGH, Pa. (BLACK AND GOLD NATION) \u2013 The Steelers had no shot of Jalen Ramsey falling to them in the 2016 NFL Draft. That didn\u2019t stop head coach Mike Tomlin from falling in love with him during the draft process.<\/p>\n

Despite holding the 25th overall pick that year, Tomlin still invited the fifth overall pick to a predraft dinner.<\/p>\n

\u201c(Then-Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert and I) fully expected him to turn down our meal,\u201d Tomlin said in 2023. \u201cHe didn\u2019t. He came. He asked great questions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Steelers trade Minkah Fitzpatrick for Jalen Ramsey, Jonnu Smith <\/a><\/p>\n

Tomlin\u2019s comments in 2023 were truly out of the blue. The Steelers were preparing to play in September against the Houston Texans, a team that Ramsey has never suited up for.<\/p>\n

In fact, Tomlin was instead talking about a similar predraft visit with Texans edge rusher Will Anderson but eventually pivoted to gushing about Ramsey.<\/p>\n

\"FILE<\/p>\n

FILE \u2013 Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey (5) stands on the field during the first half of an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo\/Rebecca Blackwell, file)<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I see passion for the game, energy for the game and intellectual development and seeking a knowledge (to become an all-time great). That\u2019s the things that make freakish talent turn into freakish play,\u201d Tomlin said.<\/p>\n

The freak from Florida State has turned out much better than fellow corner Artie Burns, who Pittsburgh selected in the first round back in 2016. Ramsey is a three-time All-Pro, seven-time Pro Bowler and a Super Bowl LVI Champion.<\/p>\n

Pickens bails on youth camp, Freiermuth steps up to help out <\/a><\/p>\n

After sending safety Minkah Fitzpatrick back to Miami, Ramsey instantly becomes the best Steelers defensive back. The 30-year-old has played the majority of his snaps as an outside corner but has flexibility to play in the slot and as a safety, a spot that is a concern after trading away Fitzpatrick.<\/p>\n

Ramsey is under contract through the 2028-29 season as one of the highest paid defensive backs in the NFL.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.<\/p>\n

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WTAJ – www.wtaj.com. <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PITTSBURGH, Pa. (BLACK AND GOLD NATION) \u2013 The Steelers had no shot of Jalen Ramsey falling to them…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":172395,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[9226,7,253,1815,9977,216,251,1255,7583,6,252,7215,13122],"class_list":{"0":"post-172394","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-artie-burns","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-houston-texans","11":"tag-jalen-ramsey","12":"tag-kevin-colbert","13":"tag-miami","14":"tag-miami-dolphins","15":"tag-mike-tomlin","16":"tag-minkah-fitzpatrick","17":"tag-nfl","18":"tag-san-francisco-49ers","19":"tag-the-steelers","20":"tag-will-anderson"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114776809699772176","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}