NFL Trade Rumors: New Orleans Saints All-Pro Tackle Ryan Ramczyk Could Miss Season

The New Orleans Saints could be without one of their most established veterans for the entire 2024 regular season. According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, right tackle Ryan Ramczyk was placed on reserve/PUP today, indicating the All-Pro will miss at least four games as he continues to recover from a lingering knee issue.

The #Saints have placed OT Ryan Ramczyk on reserve/PUP, meaning he'll miss the first four games. As has been clear for some time, his season is likely over due to a lingering knee issue.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 18, 2024

Ramczyk was a 12 game starter for the Saints in 2023 but missed the last four games of the season. The Saints finished the season 9-8, narrowly missing out on an NFC South Division title on tiebreakers.

Rapoport also notes that Ramczyk's situation could likely end his season, which, by extension, suggests the former first-round pick's career may very well be in jeopardy. Ramczyk said as much in December, citing deteriorating cartilage in his knee as his reason for missing time in 2021 and 2023.

Despite the injury, Ramczyk has managed to be a remarkably valuable player when available for the Saints. From 2021 to 2023, he notched overall grades of 84.1, 77.9, and 73.5 from Pro Football Focus. An extended absence will definitely hurt the Saints offense.

Thankfully, the Saints appear to have been planning for Ramczyk's unavailability for some time. With the 14th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, they landed standout Oregon St tackle Taliese Fuaga. They also drafted Trevor Penning 19th overall in 2021. Though neither player is the proven, reliable starter that Ramczyk is, they'll at least provide the Saints with some upside.