The New Orleans Saints made their right tackle Ryan Ramczyk the highest-paid player in his position after agreeing to a five-year, $96 million contract extension with the 27-year-old from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

Ramczyk's new contract includes $60 million in guaranteed money and an annual salary of $19.2 million, which beats the $18 million salary of Lane Johnson, who signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2019 to become the league's highest-paid tackle. 

"It's a huge relief. I'm extremely happy with how everything played out," said Ramczyk.

Having been drafted by the Saints with the No. 32 pick in 2017, Ramczyk was put in the starting lineup immediately and only missed one regular season game in the following four years. He was named to three All-Pro Teams, once on the First Team (2019) and twice on the Second Team (2018 and 2020).

Therefore, it's only logical for the Saints to lock up Ramczyk for many years to come. Moreover, the contract of Terron Armstead, the team's left tackle, is in its final year. Armstead is a three-time Pro-Bowler. It will be a great financial challenge to negotiate his contract extension but the Saints cannot to afford to lose both of them.

Before Ramczyk's new contract comes into effect, the Saints will have $5-$6 million of cap space to add more to their roster. They could use some veteran help in multiple positions like cornerback, receiver, defensive tackle and possibly linebacker.

Furthermore, running back Alvin Kamara, cornerback Marshon Lattimore, safety Marcus Williams and defensive end Trey Hendrickson all joined the Saints in the same year as Ramczyk. Hendrickson already departed for the Cincinnati Bengals. Kamara already signed an extension in 2020. The team's focus now will be on keeping Williams or Lattimore.