Report: Saints Restructure Contract of Ryan Ramczyk

New Orleans continues to work feverishly to get under the 2023 salary cap, reworking the contracts of two more of their top players.

Author:
Bob Rose
Publish date:
Feb 23, 2023 8:39 AM EST

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New Orleans Saints

Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reports that the New Orleans Saints have done a conversion to the contract of RT Ryan Ramczyk. The restructure will reportedly clear nearly $10.4 million of salary cap space for the Saints in 2023. Pelissero reports that New Orleans converted $12.92 million of Ramczyk's 2023 base salary into a signing bonus.

Field Yates of ESPN has also reported that the Saints have re-worked the deal of K Wil Lutz. The move creates an additional $1.5 million of cap space in 2023.

The 28-year-old Ramczyk was the 32nd overall selection in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft by New Orleans out of Wisconsin. He started all 18 games as a rookie, including playoffs, and was voted onto the NFL All-Rookie Team.

Ramczyk quickly cemented himself as one of the best linemen in the league. Over his first four years, he started 70 of 71 contests on one of the most physical lines in the league. He was a 1st Team All-Pro selection in 2019 and received 2nd Team honors in 2018 and 2020.

In 2021, Ramczyk missed six games with a knee injury. It was still an issue last season. He only missed one game, but was often limited in practice during the week. When healthy, Ramczyk is still a dominant run blocker and routinely shuts down the NFL's best pass rushers.

New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk (71) blocks against Baltimore Ravens LB Justin Houston (50). Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY

The Saints signed Ramczyk to a lucrative five-year contract extension in 2021. He is the third New Orleans player to have their deals restructured deal this offseason, joining S Marcus Maye and C Erik McCoy. The combined moves have created around $23 million in cap space for the Saints.

New Orleans was a reported $55 million over the 2023 NFL salary cap of $224.8 million last month. They've done some significant work towards creating room, but more moves like this are expected before the start of NFL free agency on March 15.