Yannick Ngakoue appears determined to force his way out of Jacksonville, but which teams should be trying to prise him from the Jaguars?
Yannick Ngakoue is determined to force an exit from the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The stud pass rusher, who has 37.5 sacks in four seasons, received the franchise tag from the Jaguars this offseason but has no interest in signing a long-term deal with Jacksonville.
In response to a report from NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo that stated Ngakoue is drawing interest from multiple teams, he posted on Twitter: “Why hold a man from taking care of his family. It’s obvious my time is up in my current situation. Let’s both move on @Jaguars.”
It remains to be seen whether Ngakoue will finally get his wish and be sent to pastures new, but here we look at five teams who should attempt to strike a deal with Jacksonville.
Salary cap and contract details courtesy of Spotrac.
Buffalo Bills
The Bills defense unquestionably has the potential to be one of the premier units in the NFL. A truly dominant edge rusher could take Buffalo to the next level on that side of the ball.
Jerry Hughes is still a disruptive if declining edge rusher, and the free-agent addition of Mario Addison gives them a defensive end who has at least nine sacks in each of the last four seasons.
Ed Oliver came on strong in the second half of a rookie year that saw him record five sacks, while athletic linebacker Tremaine Edmunds brings pass-rush upside that has yet to fully manifest itself in the pros.
If Oliver were to take the next step and the Bills were to trade for Ngakoue, that would take a lot of strain off a supremely talented secondary.
The Bills don’t have a first-round pick this year after sending it to the Minnesota Vikings for wide receiver Stefon Diggs. However, this is a team firmly in win-now mode. If they can put together a package attractive to Jacksonville, the Bills’ cap space – which stands at nearly $27 million –should be enough for them to sign Ngakoue to the lucrative deal he deserves.