Jalen Ramsey and Cam Akers collided along the sideline during Wednesday’s practice as the veteran corner welcomed the rookie running back to the NFL with a big hit. Tackling isn’t necessarily encouraged in this phase of practice, but it was a clean shot by all accounts – including Aaron Donald and Sean McVay, both of whom loved the hit Ramsey laid on Akers.
There’s mutual respect between Ramsey and Akers, who both went to FSU and had successful careers for the Seminoles. Although they didn’t get the chance to play together, hailing from the same program has connected the two Rams standouts.
After practice, Akers tweeted about learning from the hit, and Ramsey showed some respect for the rookie by saying he’s quickly becoming one of his favorite teammates in L.A.
I missed my chance to play wit @thereal_cam3 at FSU but he easily becoming one of my favorite teammates already!! Imma let y’all know, HE A MF DAWG!! We gettin after it daily!! https://t.co/ghhJTGxJCa
— Jalen Ramsey (@jalenramsey) August 19, 2020
Akers benefits from going up against players such as Ramsey, Donald, Michael Brockers and John Johnson every day in practice, and he hopes to just keep getting better as the regular season approaches.
I go against the best everyday 🤷🏾♂️. Let’s keep stacking days big bruh! https://t.co/oa6Jq9wxiJ
— Cam akers (@thereal_cam3) August 19, 2020
There were no injuries stemming from the hit, and it’s not as if tempers boiled over after it happened. Instead, it juiced up the defense and caught the eye of McVay – for all the right reasons.
“Yeah, I think it’s good,” McVay said of the hit. “Those guys have a good relationship going back to Florida State and the appreciation they have for their Florida State background. I think Jalen cares a lot about Cam and he’s welcomed him to the NFL, if you will. But, those guys, I think it was a good physical, smart, real play — we like those. We just don’t want to take those shots from the side. It was a frontal shot, and that’s what’s made Jalen a really special corner.”
Ramsey isn’t your average corner, and he’s big enough to lay the wood on everyone from wide receivers to running backs. Ball-carriers would be wise to keep their head up when running to his side of the field.
