Jalen Ramsey Makes His Presence FELT in Steelers Debut
On Sunday, the Steelers were able to take down the New York Jets 34-32 in one of the most talked-about games of week one. This game marked the first, hopefully of many, for Jalen Ramsey in the black and gold. If you’ve been following the team with me over the past few months, then you know how excited I have been for this, and I’m even more excited to report that his debut was even better than I thought it would be.
With :19 seconds left to go in the second quarter, Ramsey leveled Justin Fields as he threw the ball away, something Jets players took exception to, of course. Scuffles ensued, and Jets OG John Simpson shoved Jalen Ramsey prompting a flag for unnecessary roughness. I have to say, the acting job by him during this whole ordeal was impressive; hate to put it out there like that, but the little dance he did afterwards should tell you everything you need to know.
On the following play, Garrett Wilson and Josh Reynolds had Jalen Ramsey double teamed on the outside on a rushing attempt, and let’s just say it seems like they’re trying very hard even though the play is on the opposite side of the field. Then, we get the audio from that encounter, and the first thing that comes to my mind, personally, is: why the hell did it take us until 2025 to make Jalen Ramsey a Pittsburgh Steeler?
I think those two plays to close out the half were pivotal in setting the tone for the defense. They didn’t play perfect after that point, but I do think they played more aggressive. We heard from Latrobe that this group was chirpy, and I love that Jalen Ramsey wasted no time putting it on display. I talked about it when we initially traded for him: the stark contrast between he and Minkah Fitzpatrick’s personalities, and I’ve often wondered if that was something that Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan weighed in their decision to part with Minkah.
After ending the first half like that, the Steelers defense came out and forced a three-and-out in the Jets’ first possession of the second half. The video above is the third down play from that drive, with the Jets needing 9 yards for the first. As you can see, the Steelers were able to swarm Garrett Wilson after a gain of about 6 yards. This is something the Steelers have done for a while now is a ton of zone keeping everything in front of them, and swarming to the ball. But you see Ramsey slamming Wilson to the ground the way did…that’s the kind of aggression that I love to see from a DB.
Fast forward to about :36 left in the fourth quarter, with the lead but we need a stop, and this play (above) comes on 2nd & 3. Jalen Ramsey sticks with his man despite Justin Fields’ improvising, and honestly makes light work of Josh Reynolds for a PBU. This was the beginning of the end for the Jets.
And yinz know what happens two plays later. On 4th & 3, Jalen Ramsey lays the hit stick of the week on Garrett Wilson and is credited with a PBU. Steelers ball and Steelers win. It’s really incredible, for me, that I saw everything that I wanted to see out of him in his very first game with the black and gold. To go out there and be a menace the way he did, and then close out the game the way he did was really cool, and something I won’t soon forget. I think he has won the fanbase over already, and I’m pretty much ready to take a bullet for this guy, so he has certainly won me over.
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