Melvin Gordon Surrender Emboldens Jaguars in Jalen Ramsey Tussle
If the Jaguars were leaning towards trading Jalen Ramsey, watching Melvin Gordon return to the Chargers may have changed their mind. | Source: Scott Halleran / Getty Images / AFP
Fans of the Los Angeles Chargers are not the only people that have been watching the standoff between the team and their star running back, Melvin Gordon. They are certainly not the only ones that were happy to see the impasse come to an end, either. Chargers fans are probably not even the people happiest to see Gordon finally join the team.
That honor goes to the front office of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Jaguars, like the Chargers, have a star player that wants out of town, defensive back Jalen Ramsey. But unlike Gordon, his request has nothing to do with money; he says it is all about respect. However, the team has no desire to trade him.
Jalen Ramsey’s Strange Jaguars Dispute
Precisely what has transpired between Ramsey and the Jacksonville front office is a bit of a mystery, though. Ramsey has not specified how the team was or has been disrespectful – just that they had been, and he wants out. It doesn’t matter that team owner Shad Khan is willing to show him the greatest form of respect a team can by making him the highest-paid player at his position.
He wants out.
But it is not going to happen.
According to the rumor mill, the team is demanding a pretty hefty price for Ramsey. Whether it is to discourage suitors or make sure they get a just value in return is unknown. The team has said that it doesn’t want to trade him, and if the latest rumor is true, Ramey is not getting traded any time soon.
It has been reported that a team did indeed offer the Jaguars two first-round picks for Ramsey—and they declined.
It’s All About Power
Jalen Ramsey is under contract for the next two seasons. He is currently in the fourth year of his rookie contract, but the Jaguars have already chosen to exercise the fifth-year option. So, he can’t leave town without being traded until 2021—and the team doesn’t want to trade him.
If they don’t want to, they don’t have to.
NBA fans and players would disagree. Star players in the NBA have been forcing teams into trades for years. But NFL players have yet to have similar success.
Melvin Gordon wanted out of Los Angeles. He wanted out so bad that he held out of training camp, the entire preseason, and the first three weeks of the regular season. But the team didn’t cave (because it didn’t have to), and he returned to the team prior to Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins.
Had Gordon managed to force his way out of Los Angeles, the Jaguars may have had to reconsider their stance on trading Ramsey. But instead, Gordon proved a point the Jaguars are trying to make by holding onto Ramsey.
The players may make the NFL what it is, but the real power lies with the team.
