Jalen Ramsey – June 6, 2023
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Tuesday, June 6, 2023
CB Jalen Ramsey
(What are your first thoughts about the way the defense has been coming together in OTAs and the first day of minicamp?) – “It’s been good so far. It’s the first day of minicamp so it’s a progression. That’s all you can ask for really.”
(What kind of visions do you have in the early going with you and CB Xavien Howard together in the secondary?) – “We can do some special things. We can be elite. Put it all together. When the time is right, it’ll happen how it needs to happen.”
(How do you think your experience playing under Brandon Staley over in Los Angeles helps you with this defense with Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio?) – “I mean, I know the defense so that’s how it helps. I’ve been running the same defense for three years now. My past three years in LA. So now it’s the same defense. It’s just a little bit different terminology but same type of stuff. There’s different ways to play this defense. Vic has his own way of putting his own flavor in it and I guess kind of catering it to certain people who will stand out in the defense and who can stand out in any defense really.”
(Earlier Head Coach Mike McDaniel praised Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio’s defense for the way it prepares the offense. How have you seen the way this offense can kind of elevate your guys’ game as a defense with the way they go about their work?) – “Yeah, just good players going against other good players and really competing and challenging us to bring the best out of each other. Obviously you know you’ve got the receivers, you’ve got the running backs, you’ve got everybody over there who you need to challenge us and we feel the same way.”
(What have you noticed about the rookie CB Cam Smith?) – “He’s got a lot of confidence which is good. That’s like the main thing you need to play this position in the NFL. He’s learning the defense pretty quickly. Going through some rookie things, but I mean that’s given. He’ll continue growing and doing good things. He’s cool. He’s good.”
(What would you tell any rookie corner coming into this league. What’s the No. 1 thing you’ve got to tell a guy?) – ” I’m just helping my teammates out so the rest of them can figure it out kind of themselves. (laughter)”
(What have you been able to take in and notice while you’re watching team drills off to the side?) – “Just looking and trying to help out wherever I can. Because like I said, I know the defense so that’s really where I’m trying to help this offseason, this minicamp. If anybody’s got questions about the defense or if I feel like they can be more comfortable playing it. Because you can kind of – there’s certain ways that Vic (Fangio) wants it to be very specific, but there’s also certain ways where you can have your own flavor and get comfortable within the defense. So that’s where I’m trying to help, honestly. But all these guys are professionals. They’ve got to kind of get it themselves and any way I can help, I’ll give them my input then, but I’m not doing too much like forcing it on nobody or nothing. It’s natural.”
(With no pads right now how do you measure progress as a defense and as a team?) – “Picking up our defense. It’s a new defense for everybody and it’s not an easy defense. That’s how you measure our progress right now, is picking up the defense and then when we do add it all, pads and all that when the time is right. Then it’ll be cool.”
(Was the plan for you to kind of ramp up slowly and training camp be when you’re full go, or did something kind of pop up that you weren’t expecting physically?) – “No, I think I’ve had the same plan for the past three offseasons. So it’s the same here, same carryover here. I play extremely physical. I play a physical style of game and I recover my body the right way. I trust in my process. The training staff and the strength staff here are extremely good and we are very like-minded in the way that we think about my training regimens and rehabbing or whatever the case may be. So we’re all on the same page with that. What matters is when the time is right, that I’m ready to go full go and that’s not even a question in anybody’s minds. So yeah, we’re following the right plan for me.”
(You mentioned that this is not an easy defense. Do you remember when it clicked for you that you could play fast in it and what it was that helped you do that?) – “I’ve had great coaches, honestly. Coach (Brandon) Staley was great. We had a great relationship obviously, and I was able to learn the defense a little bit faster than other guys I guess because of that relationship. And then Coach Rod (Renaldo Hill) became the defensive coordinator, it was kind of the same and our relationship has always been good. Just putting a lot of energy into it and learning it. I’ve been blessed that certain stuff is like catered to me or certain guys so it’s a little bit easier for me as well in those regards. And just the fact that I play multiple positions, so I have to know the defense really well. I just take a lot of pride in that.”
(It’s a new defense for a lot of folks here at Miami to see. You mentioned different positions. Can you maybe educate folks on when you played the star in Los Angeles versus the corner responsibilities there?) – “It’s just different roles. The defense may ask different responsibilities for certain people at certain times or certain games and moments or whatever the case may be. When you have a guy or a few guys who are able to be versatile and play multiple positions – corner, safety, nickel, whatever the case may be, play different techniques, be able to play different schemes and coverages and all that, it’s a plus for the defense. So not only myself, but there’s a handful of guys who can do that on this defense. That’s a big positive. Just getting everybody to learn the system in its entirety is really good.”
(When you look at this defense, especially the amount of zone coverage you guys can play. How do you see that really impacting offenses in years past when you get in this defense?) – “I mean, we’ve got to put it all together, but it’s not just zone. This defense is very complex. So y’all looking on the outside, y’all may think that it’s zone, but it’s not. It’s a very complex defense and it’s a lot less zone than you think, especially under Coach Vic (Fangio). It’s a lot less zone which is great, because you have guys that can play a lot of man, but you also have guys that can play the zone schemes and stuff like that. Yeah, I mean, it excites me just in general having these guys on the team. This is the best defense I’ve played in. Like I said, I have played in it for the past three years anyway so I’m excited for that. But Vic is kind of like, one of the guys who innovated it, innovated the defense, so it’s exciting to have him as the coach and see how he views it, see how he calls things and see what he leans towards as far as his schemes and coverages and stuff like that. So it’s been fun so far, but it’s all been learning and it’s all just been trying to get everybody on the same page. It’s been good.”
