Ironically, New Orleans has found the replacement for Willie Roaf on the team to which recently traded for him.

The Saints reached a contract agreement with unrestricted offensive tackle Victor Riley, who played the last four seasons in Kansas City. Riley, 27, will be the starting right tackle for the Saints, who will move Kyle Turley, the incumbent at that position, to Roaf’s former spot on the left side.

A former Auburn star, Riley was clearly the best offensive tackle still in free agency, likely the top blocker overall, and possibly the premier player remaining in the unrestricted pool. He will sign a two-year contract for $2.7 million, but the deal will void after the first year if Riley reaches certain predetermined performance levels in 2002.

Those benchmarks should be easily attainable for Riley, meaning the contract will most likely be for one year at over $1 million, and permit him to re-enter the free agent pool again next spring.

Despite an injury that limited him to career lows in appearances (seven) and starts (five) last season, Riley gained acclaim for his dominating performance against New York Giants defensive end Michael Strahan in a Sept. 23 matchup. Even with that performance, though, the market was soft for Riley in the first month of free agency and he and agent Pat Dye Jr. decided to look for a shorter-term deal that would get him back into free agency next year.

Part of the reason some teams backed off Riley is that he will be suspended for the first game of the 2002 season because of a domestic incident last year.

Riley visited with several teams over the past few weeks and rejected a three-year offer from the Chiefs earlier this week. Had the Chiefs retained Riley, he would have played right tackle, Roaf would have been on the left side, and former left tackle John Tait would have moved to guard.

The Saints, who did not get involved with Riley until Monday, moved quickly to secure his services. Riley is the second free agent offensive linemen New Orleans acquired since dealing away Roaf, the team having last week signed Spencer Folau to a two-year contract.

The first-round choice of the Chiefs in the 1998 draft, Riley was an immediate starter in Kansas City. He has appeared in 55 games and started 52 of them. Until last season, he has never missed a game. Riley is a prototype strongside tackle, a massive blocker (6-feet-5, 328 pounds), who is capable of dominating when motivated.

He is a strong drive blocker in the running game but has quick enough feet that some teams feel he could line up at left tackle, if necessary.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.