Ravens' Kyle Hamilton Extension A Matter of When, Not If

In just three years, Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton has become arguably the best safety in the league, earning a first-team All-Pro selection in 2023 and a second-team selection in 2024.

Now, it's about time he gets paid what he deserves.

Hamilton will make $18.6 million in 2026 after the Ravens picked up his fifth-year option earlier this month - a well-deserved raise from his rookie deal, but it's not the main prize. That would be the extension he's now eligible for, which will almost certainly make him the highest-paid player at the position.

In fact, ESPN's Jamison Hensley believes that such an extension is all but inevitable.

"The Ravens used the fifth-year option on Hamilton, but it feels as if it's a matter of when -- not if -- he'll become the NFL's highest-paid safety," Hensley wrote.

"Hamilton has quickly become one of the leaders and playmakers on defense, making him the type of foundational player around whom Baltimore loves to build. ... If Hamilton signs an extension, he is expected to surpass Detroit's Kerby Joseph ($21.5 million per season) as the league's highest-paid safety."

Hamilton, the No. 14 overall pick in 2022 out of Notre Dame, has proven himself more than worthy of a monster extension. In addition to the aforementioned accolades, he's also one of the most versatile players at the position, able to line up virtually anywhere. He's been restricted to playing deep recently due to the Ravens' poor depth at the position, and it doesn't seem like that will change this season with Ar'Darius Washington missing significant time due to an Achilles tear, but Hamilton's versatility is essentially unmatched.

The 24-year-old knows that an extension will come in time, so long as he keeps doing what he's doing.

"I'm not in a big rush, so if it happens, it happens. Cool," Hamilton told reporters on April 21. "And if it happens this offseason, [that's] cool, too, but I'm not in a rush to get it done necessarily."

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