Cowboys ‘Promise’ to Rams CB Jalen Ramsey? A $50 Million Trade Idea

Should the Cowboys pay the price to trade for the cap-strapped Rams’ Jalen Ramsey?

FRISCO - In 2016, the Dallas Cowboys faced a classic NFL Draft conundrum.

They owned the No. 4 pick, and loved both running back Ezekiel Elliott and cornerback Jalen Ramsey.

“Tags touching’ is what sources told us then of the two prospects’ position on the Big Board Inside team HQ.

Dallas, of course, went with Zeke. Ramsey went to Jacksonville, where his unhappiness led to a trade to the Rams - and to a Super Bowl title.

Now the cap-strapped Rams are admitting they must pay the piper.

Should the Cowboys meanwhile pay the price to trade for Ramsey?

The Cowboys will look to upgrade their cornerback play at some point this offseason, even with Trevon Diggs and DaRon Bland locked in under coordinator Dan Quinn.

Rams Pro Bowler Ramsey has already cryptically mentioned change, tweeting that he “went out (of L.A.?) with a bang!”

And Rams GM Les Snead is conceding to the need to “remodel” his roster.

Ramsey, 28, has three years remaining on his deal, but after 2023 and 2024 the deal appears to have an escape hatch.

Still, that’s more than $50 million for two seasons - making it one of the most expensive ideas available.

Sidebar: Ramsey has given interviews since the draft noting that he remains angered at Dallas because he grew up a Cowboys fan and "When I was on my visit to Dallas, they told me straight-up to my face, 'If you're there at four, we're taking you.”

So … now the “lie” can be a “promise” fulfilled?

According to the Washington Post, it's a "matter of when, not if" Ramsey is traded - and general managers around the NFL "don’t believe (the Rams) will get anywhere near the compensation that their fans might expect."

So Ramsey is not worth the pair of first-round picks he was traded for in 2019 from the Jaguars. In fact, the trade price might actually be cheap if the Rams simply want out.

Could Dallas massage the salary? Would Dallas change it’s general policy of avoiding big-money “outside free agents”? The Rams took a big swing and Ramsey helped them to a Super Bowl.

Maybe “big swings” are what the almost-good Cowboys are lacking.

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Mike Fisher
MIKE FISHER

Mike Fisher - as a newspaper beat writer and columnist and on radio and TV, where he is an Emmy winner - has covered the NFL since 1983 and the Dallas Cowboys since 1990, is the author of two best-selling books on the Cowboys.