The Way USC's System Prepared Safety Kamari Ramsey for the NFL

After a solid 2025 campaign, USC Trojans safety Kamari Ramsey is ready to begin his NFL career after being selected by the Houston Texans with first pick in the fifth round, No. 141 overall, in the 2026 NFL Draft.

With his NFL career set to begin, it is time to take a look at how USC prepared Ramsey for the NFL. Ramsey joins former Trojans like Calen Bullock and Jaylin Smith as members of the Houston backfield, so the Texans must like something about USC's development in the secondary.

USC System Prepared Safety Kamari Ramsey 2026 NFL Draft Big Ten Physicality Positional Versatility Instincts — Oct 12, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions tight end Tyler Warren (44) is stopped by USC Trojans safety Kamari Ramsey (7) after a short gain in the second half at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Physicality in The Secondary

In the NFL, many players find different ways to be successful, and in his college career, Ramsey was able to develop two different traits to help him to do just that.

The first trait is Ramsey’s physicality as a player who can provide great support against opposing rush attacks. In his USC career, Ramsey recorded 87 tackles and seven tackles for loss, showcasing his ability to make tackles consistently and help generate negative plays to put offenses behind schedule.

With that production, Ramsey brought great physical play in the Big Ten, where physicality is required to be successful. Playing against teams like Michigan, Iowa, and Notre Dame, Ramsey’s physicality, especially as a run defender, was tested on a week-to-week basis, but he was able to answer that call.

Ramsey’s ability to hold up physically in a conference like the Big Ten is a great sign for what his future in the NFL could look like, with the seasons getting longer and the physical play taking an even bigger toll.

Standing at 6-0 and 205 pounds, Ramsey showed the ability to stay up to par with a physical brand of football, but also be a valuable run defender at the safety position.

Instincts and Versatility

As a player in the secondary, it is becoming much more desirable to possess positional versatility so the defense can align in different ways and match what the offense is doing with personnel groups and formations. Additionally, having the instincts to go make plays regardless of the position is another great trait.

At safety, Ramsey has both of those traits, which he was able to put on tape at USC. Ramsey did a great job flying down to fill his gap in the run game, but he did his job just as well in the pass game.

Ramsey also showed his ability to anticipate what opposing teams were doing through the air from his typical safety position, and had the positional flexibility to be successful in the slot at nickel corner as well.

The instincts that Ramsey put on tape have a great chance to lead him into a very successful NFL career. As he continues to develop those instincts, Ramsey could build off his college career and generate even more turnovers and big plays against opposing offenses.

On the ball production side, Ramsey tallied 11 pass breakups, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles in his college career. With the way Ramsey sees the game, he can definitely continue to grow significantly to improve that aspect of his game and become a great ball hawk.

However Ramsey is used, his physicality, versatility, and instincts are traits that should help him translate to the NFL level and become a solid NFL player.

After being selected by the Texans, it will be interesting to see how Ramsey develops in the NFL alongside a few fellow former USC defensive backs.

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