The Saints have exercised their 2021 fifth-year options on cornerback Marshon Lattimore and offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Lattimore and Ramczyk become the first members of the 2017 draft class to have their options picked up, and are also the first to have their options fully guaranteed. Under the terms of the new contractual bargaining agreement, fifth-year options — which are available for all first-round picks and had previously been guaranteed for injury only — are now guaranteed for injury, cap, and skill purposes.
Part of a 2017 Saints draft class that also included Alvin Kamara and Marcus Williams, Lattimore and Ramczyk have quickly become essential cogs for New Orleans. Lattimore has started 43 games and posted eight interceptions over his first three years in the NFL, earning Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2017 and Pro Bowl nods in both 2017 and 2019.
Ramcyzk, meanwhile, has only missed one contest since entering the league and is arguably the NFL’s premier right tackle. Indeed, Pro Football Focus graded the former Wisconsin Badger as the league’s No. 1 offensive tackle — even including those that play on the blindside — in 2019. Both he and Lattimore should be in for hefty extensions in the near future.