It has been just over a year since the Steelers brought Jalen Ramsey to Pittsburgh, and the résumé still jumps off the page. He arrived as an All-Pro, a Super Bowl winner and a perennial Pro Bowler, and his first season in black and gold ended with yet another trip to the festivities.
Still, the fit comes with some real questions. Ramsey played more than 1,100 snaps last season and moved all over the secondary, working as a slot cornerback, a box safety and a free safety. That versatility gave Pittsburgh a steady presence on the back end, but it also comes with a concern heading into his 11th NFL season: foot speed.
Even with that, the Steelers are counting on him. That’s why Ramsey lands 17th on the team’s top-25 players list for the upcoming season.
A lot of what happens next depends on new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Pittsburgh is hoping Graham can do in Pittsburgh what he did with the Las Vegas Raiders, turning a mediocre group into something respectable. The Steelers believe he can take a talented but underachieving defense and push it to another level.
Ramsey is part of that equation too. He has already put together a Hall of Fame-caliber career, but he’s still chasing more, and the Steelers want to use him in a way that brings out the best version of him. In 2025, that came in the slot, and the hope is that 2026 looks the same.
This isn’t a player who has lost his edge. Ramsey may not be the quickest defensive back on the field anymore, but he still brings real bite.
In 17 games last season, he picked off one pass, broke up six more, held quarterbacks under a 75% completion rate, and added 3.0 sacks and 65 total tackles. The physicality that has defined his career is still there.
The key is usage. If Pittsburgh asks Ramsey to shadow a team’s top receiver or erase a true No. 1 threat, the results probably won’t be what the Steelers want. But if he’s stationed in the nickel, sent on the occasional blitz and kept in positions where he can see the play develop in front of him, he can still make a major impact.
That’s the vision Graham and the Steelers are hoping to bring to life. If it works, Ramsey’s ranking here may end up looking way too low by season’s end.
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