Jalen Ramsey to Mike McDaniel on recovery: ‘Tell me what the timeline is and I’ll beat it by a month’

Jalen Ramsey is bringing his intense competitive nature to his recovery from knee surgery, with the Miami Dolphins star cornerback reportedly vowing to return to the field much sooner than whatever doctors have predicted.

Ramsey told head coach Mike McDaniel that he will beat the prognosis by a month, which would be great news for the Dolphins as they attempt to make the playoffs in back-to-back seasons for the first time in more than 20 years.

The 28-year-old was injured in an early training camp practice. He had surgery to repair his meniscus, and the reported timeline for a return has varied from weeks to many months, depending on the source.

Ramsey joined the Dolphins this offseason in a trade with the Los Angeles Rams, where he won the Super Bowl for the 2021 NFL season. He was expected to pair with Xavien Howard to bolster the Miami secondary.

Ramsey has been raving about the scheme under defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, and the expectation for the defense’s improvement reportedly has some players believing it could be among the top five units in the league.

The Dolphins likely would like Ramsey to return by Week 7 of the regular season, when they start a stretch of three important games. They play at the Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 22, and after hosting the New England Patriots on Oct. 29, they take on the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs on Nov. 5 in Frankfurt, Germany.

Miami signed veteran cornerback Eli Apple in an attempt to hold things down at the position until Ramsey can return. It is an interesting choice by the Dolphins considering Apple’s sometimes contentious exchanges with Tyreek Hill during their careers.

All of this is going on while Miami awaits a decision by free agent running back Dalvin Cook. The Miami native visited the New York Jets this weekend but left without a contract, so he remains available if the Dolphins are still interested.

With the Dolphins emerging as legitimate contenders in the AFC, more eyes are on them as training camp moves along, and they certainly have had plenty of news emerge so far.