How Would Jalen Ramsey Impact the Detroit Lions?

Thursday Night Football isn’t the best product the NFL has to offer. It’s difficult for players to prepare for a game on Thursday after they’ve just completed a game Sunday. This past Thursday allowed for a first-hand look at Jalen Ramsey, the star corner who’s asked the Jacksonville Jaguars for a trade. Perhaps the Detroit Lions should make a phone call?

I was anything but excited to sit down Thursday night to watch the Tennessee Titans square off against the Jacksonville Jaguars. I mean, it’s still NFL football so I will watch, but it wasn’t something I started thinking about at noon during my workday like I would if it were a marquee matchup. I did have some additional interest to see two players; Jalen Ramsey and Jags quarterback Gardner Minshew. One because I can’t help but continue to wonder if the Detroit Lions are at all interested in Ramsey, the other because of the stache.

That’s a joke, relax, I wanted to see what all the hype was about with Minshew. I mean the guy apparently stretches in pre-game in just a jockstrap. His teammates mention he’s a guy full of swagger, an underdog who was drafted in the sixth round. Plus he’s proved he can play a little bit to go along with all of his antics. So, maybe I was kind of excited to watch a Thursday night game?

Ok, let’s get down to business. I recently mentioned I would not be in favor of adding Jalen Ramsey if the asking price is as rumored–two first-round draft picks. I still stand by that, but if you can get him for ‘just’ a first, I’m becoming more and more interested.

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I still believe the Detroit Lions have other holes to fill, specifically on their offensive line. Yes, the interior part of the OL has been surprising. As impressive as Joe Dahl, Frank Ragnow and Graham Glasgow have been, it’s been the exact opposite for the high priced tackles, Rick Wagner and Taylor Decker.

Decker was flat out terrible in Arizona. He tried to play through a back injury, but he performed so poorly that he was forced to miss week two against the Chargers. To say I’m a little concerned about the back injury is an understatement. Backs are very tricky. What if it never heals correctly? Will Decker ever be able to become the franchise LT the Detroit Lions hoped when they drafted him?

Instead of trading for Jalen Ramsey, I felt the Detroit Lions needed to sure up their O-line. I still think that Trent Williams would be worth the risk and they’d be able to acquire the 31-year old at a much cheaper price than Ramsey. But, what would Jalen Ramsey mean to this already stout defense?

This Detroit Lions defense is already a force, but one weakness is the starting outside corner opposite Darius Slay. Something exciting that I noticed Thursday night is that Ramsey primarily lines up as the right corner in Jacksonville’s defense. Well, that would work wonderfully in Detroit because Slay is most comfortable playing as the left corner.

The Jags front seven are fantastic. Did you see all the pressure they got on the Titans Thursday? I believe they notched nine sacks. They like to call themselves Sacksonville. When you have A.J. Bouye, and Jalen Ramsey like the Jags do at corner, they can completely take away a pair of receivers giving the defensive front plenty of time to chase down any quarterback.

Ramsey is so versatile; he’s 6’2 so he can cover the best tight ends in the game, along with any wide-receiver you run out at him. Take, for example, Zach Ertz is likely going to be a thorn in the side of the Detroit Lions tomorrow. Ramsey can match up one on one with him. Ramsey is also very durable. He’s never missed an NFL start. He’s also regarded as the best player at his position.

The Detroit Lions would be a matchup nightmare for their opponents. Plus unlike the Jags, the Lions have an offense that can score at any given time.

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It does appear the Jaguars are prepared to make Jalen Ramsey the highest-paid corner in the league but is it too late? For a youngster whose idol was Deion Sanders, he’s spoken his piece, and he may not want to mend fences. If he’s indeed available, the Detroit Lions should at the very least consider making a blockbuster deal.

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