MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The Miami Dolphins are pursuing trade options for All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey, general manager Chris Grier confirmed on Tuesday.
Ramsey did not ask for a trade, and he didn't ask for more money, Grier clarified, but after weeks of conversations with Ramsey's representation, both sides agreed it would be best to potentially move on.
“These decisions aren't done quickly," Grier said at his pre-NFL draft news conference. "And they're not taken lightly because we've spent a lot of time this offseason working through this, talking through things."
Miami has been in talks with a few teams about a potential trade. Grier declined to go into detail about the contents of discussions he's had with Ramsey, and did not give a clear reason for potentially parting ways with the cornerback, who was acquired from the Los Angeles Rams in 2023 and given a three-year, $72.3 million contract extension ahead of the 2024 season. That deal made Ramsey the highest-paid cornerback in the league at the time.
Ramsey already earned a $4 million roster bonus from the Dolphins at the start of the league year in March. The team that trades for him would have to pay Ramsey around $21 million, which he's guaranteed in 2025, per overthecap.com.
His departure would leave Miami needing to fill two starting cornerback slots after releasing Kendall Fuller, who started 11 games in 2024.
Kader Kohou will start at nickel, though Grier said he's versatile enough to play inside and outside. Miami added Artie Burns in free agency and has young cornerbacks Storm Duck and Cam Smith.
“We feel good about where it is. It’s never easy to replace a player like Jalen," Grier said. "He was a good player for us. He’s a good player. He’ll probably be a Hall of Famer. But for the Miami Dolphins going forward, we feel like this is the best chance to help us win not only just this year but in the future as well.”
Smith's ability to move into a permanent starting role remains to be seen, but the Dolphins could certainly use a jump from the former second-round pick. He was limited to just six games last season because of injuries and barely played as a rookie in 2023.
Cam Smith needs to come through at the end of the day," Grier said. “He’s got to stay healthy and be on the field. He has shown some flashes, but this is a very big year. He knows what’s expected because we can’t hold his hand and wait for him anymore.”
There's a chance Ramsey will not be traded. Grier said if that happens, “We'll deal with it," adding that he's not sure if a trade will materialize before this month's draft.
Ramsey was traded from the Rams in March 2023, but a knee injury early in his first Dolphins training camp sidelined him the first half of the season. Still, he made his seventh Pro Bowl that season after three interceptions, five pass breakups and 22 tackles in 10 games.
He played all 17 games in 2024 but missed the Pro Bowl for the first time since 2019. He finished with 60 tackles, two interceptions, 11 passes deflected and a sack.
During the season, Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver described Ramsey as the “ultimate chess piece” that the team can move around the field to maximize his impact, which has been felt since he entered the NFL as the Jacksonville Jaguars’ fifth overall pick in 2016.
Grier did not say if Ramsey was unhappy with his role.
A Ramsey trade would be another huge loss, as Miami will no longer have key veterans in defensive tackle Calais Campbell and left tackle Terron Armstead.
Campbell, who played in Miami on a one-year deal last season, chose to re-sign with the team that drafted him in the Arizona Cardinals, and Armstead recently announced his retirement after 12 NFL seasons.
Grier was hesitant to call this another rebuild for the Dolphins, who finished a disappointing 2024 season by missing the playoffs.
“That word has not been brought up at all,” Grier said. "We have a lot of really good football players on this roster still at some places that impact games, so that word has not been used at all. Our goal is to win, win this year and keep winning for sustained success in the future.”
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
FILE - Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey walks on the field during the first half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans , Dec. 15, 2024, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith, file)
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip on Friday killed at least 64 people, hospitals said, as U.S. President Donald Trump wraps up his Middle East visit that skipped Israel and offered no prospect for a ceasefire in the war-battered territory.
At least 48 bodies were brought to the Indonesian Hospital and another 16 bodies were taken to Nasser Hospital, health officials said, as strikes overnight into Friday morning hit the outskirts of Deir al-Balah and the city of Khan Younis.
The widespread attacks across come as Trump finishes his visit to Gulf states but not Israel. There had been widespread hope that his regional trip could usher in a ceasefire deal or renewal of humanitarian aid to Gaza. An Israeli blockade of the territory is now in its third month.
Speaking to reporters at a business forum in Abu Dhabi on the final day of his trip, Trump said he was looking to resolve a range of global crises, including Gaza. “We’re looking at Gaza,” he said. “And we’ve got to get that taken care of. A lot of people are starving. A lot of people are — there’s a lot of bad things going on.”
The Israeli military had no immediate comment on the strikes, which lasted hours into Friday morning and sent people fleeing from the Jabaliya refugee camp and the town of Beit Lahiya. They followed days of similar attacks that killed more than 130 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
After the strikes, dark smoke was seen rising over Jabaliya as people grabbed what they could of their belongings and fled on donkey carts, by car and foot.
“The army entered upon us, bombing, killing. ... We got out of the house with difficulty, killing and death, we did not take anything,” said Feisal Al-Attar, who was displaced from Beit Lahiya.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed earlier in the week to push ahead with a promised escalation of force in Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip to pursue his aim of destroying the Hamas militant group, which governs Gaza.
In comments released by Netanyahu’s office Tuesday, the prime minister said Israeli forces were days away from entering Gaza “with great strength to complete the mission ... It means destroying Hamas.”
An Israeli official said the strikes on Friday were preparatory actions in the lead-up to a larger operation and to send a message to Hamas that it will begin soon if there isn’t an agreement to release hostages. The official was not authorized to brief media and spoke on condition of anonymity
The same official said that Cabinet members were meeting Friday to assess the negotiations in Qatar, where ceasefire talks are taking place, and to decide on next steps.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer told The Associated Press on Friday that Israel’s military is intensifying its operations as it has done since Hamas stopped releasing hostages. “Our objective is to get them home and get Hamas to relinquish power,” he said. He said Israel will continue pressuring Hamas while negotiating, saying that it's getting results.
On Friday, families of the hostages said they awoke up with “heavy hearts” to reports of increased attacks and called on Netanyahu to “join hands” with Trump’s efforts to release the hostages.
“Missing this historic opportunity for a deal to bring the hostages home would be a resounding failure that will be remembered in infamy forever,” the families said in a statement released by the hostage forum, which supports them.
On Friday, families of the hostages said they awoke up with “heavy hearts” to reports of increased attacks and called on Netanyahu to “join hands” with Trump’s efforts to release the hostages.
“Missing this historic opportunity for a deal to bring the hostages home would be a resounding failure that will be remembered in infamy forever," the families said in a statement released by the hostage forum, which supports them.
The war began when Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people in an Oct. 7, 2023, intrusion into southern Israel. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. Almost 3,000 have been killed since Israel broke a ceasefire on March 18, the ministry said.
Hamas still holds 58 of the roughly 250 hostages it took during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel, with 23 believed to still be alive, although Israeli authorities have expressed concern for the status of three of those.
The attacks come as Israel enters its third month of blockading Gaza, preventing food, fuel medicine and all other supplies from entering, worsening a humanitarian crisis. Israel says the blockade aims to pressure Hamas to release the hostages it still holds and that it won’t allow aid S
Earlier this week, a new humanitarian organization that has U.S. backing to take over aid delivery said it expects to begin operations before the end of the month — after what it describes as key agreements from Israeli officials.
A statement from the group, called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, identified several U.S. military veterans, former humanitarian coordinators and security contractors that it said would lead the delivery effort.
Many in the humanitarian community, including the U.N., said the system does not align with humanitarian principles and won't be able to meet the needs of Palestinians in Gaza and won't participate it.
———
Mroue reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Tia Goldenberg and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel contributed to this report.
Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Beit Lahia amid ongoing Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip arrive in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Friday, May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Beit Lahia amid ongoing Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip arrive in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Friday, May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Beit Lahia amid ongoing Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip arrive in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Friday, May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Beit Lahia amid ongoing Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip arrive in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Friday, May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Beit Lahia amid ongoing Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip arrive in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Friday, May 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Palestinians struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Jabalia, northern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Palestinians struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Jabalia, northern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Palestinians struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Jabalia, northern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Israeli soldiers work on tanks and APCs at a staging area near the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern Israel, Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
