"Nearing a deadline to accomplish one of their stated priorities, the Ravens today reached agreement on a five-year deal with Haloti Ngata, ensuring that one of the game's most dominant interior lineman will be a fixture on their defense for the foreseeable future.

Terms of the deal are unknown at this point, but the pact expected to make Ngata one of the highest paid defensive lineman in the NFL.

Ngata's agent, Mike McCartney, announced the deal being official on his Twitter account. The deal was also confirmed by a Ravens official.

If the Ravens hadn't reached a deal with the mammoth defensive tackle by Tuesday, Ngata, 27, would have played the rest of the season under the franchise tag, and on a one-year $12.5 million deal. Now, Ngata gets the long-term security that he's been seeking, and the Ravens open up a little room under the 2011 salary cap.

Ngata, a former first-round pick who has developed into the Ravens' latest defensive star, is a two-time Pro Bowl performer and he's playing at an even higher level this season. In the Ravens' 35-7 season-opening win against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ngata had four tackles, a forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and a batted pass which led to an interception."