The NFL has a new highest-paid right tackle.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported that the New Orleans Saints and right tackle Ryan Ramczyk agreed to a five-year, $96 million extension, per sources informed of the situation. The deal includes $60 million in guaranteed money, according to Rapoport.
Ramczyk, a 2017 first-round pick, was scheduled to make $11.064 million on the fifth-year option. Now the Saints locked him down for years to come.
The Eagles' Lane Johnson previously sat atop the right tackle market, averaging $18 million on a $72 million deal. Ramczyk waved while passing by Johnson with his $19.2 million average. The new agreement comes in fifth in average per year salary among all offensive tackles.
Ramczyk stepped in as an immediate starter for the Saints and solidified the right side of the line. He's missed just one regular-season game in four years and earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2019. Consistently one of the best blocking tackles in the NFL, Ramczyk excels in both the run and passing game. In four seasons, he's allowed just 10 total sacks and 10 QB hits, per Pro Football Focus.
In the aftermath of the 2017 NFL Draft, the discussion centered around the Saints' inability to land quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who went one pick ahead of where New Orleans took corner Marshon Lattimore. We also learned that Sean Payton & Co. were planning to draft linebacker Reuben Foster with the 32nd pick, before San Francisco swooped in. Instead, the Saints "settled" for Ramczyk. Sometimes fortune smiles when we're looking the other way.
Inking Ramczyk to an extension was always believed to be one way the Saints would help get out of salary-cap jail this offseason. It took a little bit longer than New Orleans hoped, but the deal got done before training camp.
The extension ensures the rock remains on the right side of a Saints O-line that should be among the best in the NFL for years to come if health endures.
With Ramczyk's deal done, New Orleans now turns its attention to Lattimore, who is also up for a big extension entering the final year of his rookie contract.
