The Miami Dolphins' secondary is led by star cornerback Jalen Ramsey and then has a bunch of uncertainty after that. With two new safeties and a second-year player set to line up across from Ramsey, the Dolphins are going to have to make a lot of changes to their secondary to compete. Their higher draft picks will most likely be used on safeties or the defensive line, so to fix the cornerback position, they are going to have to look at the trade market.
The Dolphins need a more experienced and proven corner across from Ramsey to help them compete against top offenses and to make sure that they have at least one solid area on the defense. The Dolphins really struggled in coverage last year and with Ramsey only getting older, they have to bring in some help.
That is where the Baltimore Ravens come in to make a deal with Miami. The Dolphins would receive Marlon Humphrey and the Ravens' first-round pick for defensive back Storm Duck, the Dolphins' first-round pick, a fourth-round pick, and a fifth-round pick. The trade helps out both teams, and the Dolphins can bring in a stud experienced corner.
Marlon Humphrey is a 28-year-old 6'0 203-pound cornerback who is a four-time Pro Bowler and a two-time first-team All-Pro selection. Humphrey had 67 tackles, five tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, six interceptions, and 15 pass deflections last year for the Ravens in 16 games. He also added eight tackles in the Ravens' two playoff games.
Humphrey is a very smart and talented cornerback that is strong, has great ball skills, really good hands, and has elite play recognition. Humphrey is really good at reading the quarterbacks eyes, disrupting plays, and making plays on the ball. He had a career high in interceptions last year and tied his career high for pass deflections.
All these good things may make it seem like the Ravens wouldn't trade him, but his stats do not tell the whole story. Humphrey got off to a slow start last season and then picked it up and ended the season strongly. Humphrey struggled when matched up against top wide receivers and showed he is not just going to take a team's best wide receiver out of the game.
The Ravens' secondary has struggled for some years now, and Humphrey has been at the helm of it every year. The Ravens need another cornerback and will most likely draft one in this draft trade, whether or not. One of their lone bright spots in the secondary was rookie Nate Wiggins, and they may want to move on from the 28-year-old Humphrey after seeing his struggles and go all in on a younger and new secondary.
The Ravens would be moving up in the draft which gives them a lot of options. The Ravens biggest needs are offensive line, receiver, cornerback, safety, and defensive line. With the 13th pick in the draft, the Ravens would have a lot of options. They could pick players like Will Johnson, Tetairoa McMillan, Matthew Golden, Mike Green, Kelvin Banks Jr, Grey Zabel, or Malaki Starks.
They also would be keeping almost all of their draft picks while gaining an additional fourth and fifth round picks. All of this draft capital will help them fill out whatever positions they do not draft in the first round. Not to forget they would also be getting Storm Duck who is an extremely talented and young cornerback who is going into just his second season.
Duck could be a starter or an important rotational piece for the Ravens' secondary. This could allow them to fix their cornerback depth by drafting one and bringing in Duck. They would get younger at cornerback and not have to worry about drafting multiple of them.
For the Dolphins, besides bringing in Humphrey, they would also get to stay in the first round and not have to worry about getting a corner in the draft. The Dolphins could still pick a safety, a defensive lineman, or an offensive lineman in the first round. They would also still have a second, third, fourth, fifth, and three seventh-round picks to fill out the rest of the roster.
The trade would benefit both teams and allow the Dolphins to get more experience at corner, while allowing the Ravens to get younger at corner. The Dolphins bringing in Humphrey would be a great way to give this defense some hope going into next season.
