AP sources: Rams trading All-Pro CB Jalen Ramsey to Dolphins

© Provided by The Associated Press FILE – Los Angeles Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey (5) stands on the field before an NFL football game against the Seattle Seahawks on Jan. 8, 2023, in Seattle. The Miami Dolphins are acquiring Ramsey in a trade with the Los Angeles Rams, according to two people with knowledge of the trade Sunday, March 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr, File)

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The Miami Dolphins are acquiring All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey in a trade with the Los Angeles Rams, two people with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press on Sunday.

The Rams will get Miami’s third-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft and tight end Hunter Long, according to the people, who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because neither team had announced the deal.

Shortly after news of the trade broke, Ramsey indicated on social media that Miami was his preferred destination.

“I prayed for this specifically for about a month & now it’s happening! @MiamiDolphins LETSGO!” Ramsey tweeted Sunday.

The Rams went 5-12 last season and missed the playoffs just one year after winning the Super Bowl, and they’ve have been making changes to their roster this offseason. Los Angeles parted ways with veteran linebacker Bobby Wagner last month after one season.

The Rams traded for Ramsey in the middle of the 2019 season after he spent the first four years of his career in Jacksonville. Ramsey, a six-time Pro Bowl selection, had 77 tackles and four interceptions during the Rams’ Super Bowl-winning 2021 season. Last season, he had a career-high 88 tackles and four interceptions.

Adding Ramsey is another step for Miami in rebuilding a defense that had a down year in 2022, by its standards.

After Miami finished last year ranked 18th in total defense, 24th in scoring defense and 27th against the pass, the Dolphins parted ways with defensive coordinator Josh Boyer and brought in former Denver head coach Vic Fangio to lead the defense.

Miami needed to bolster a secondary that was decimated by injury last year and was without cornerback Byron Jones, who the team is expected to release on Wednesday, when the NFL’s new year begins, in a cost-cutting move. Jones missed the entire 2022 season after undergoing Achilles surgery last March.

Ramsey is expected to play alongside Miami’s Pro Bowl cornerback Xavien Howard, who had 45 tackles and an interception in 2022.

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AP Sports Writer Greg Beacham in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

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