The Jacksonville Jaguars are heading towards a busy offseason and one in which they may have to extend defensive end Yannick Ngakoue. In all probability, they will have to place the franchise tag on him initially, but according to Michael DiRocco of ESPN, the young pass rusher’s mind could be on setting the market with a deal worth $22 million annually.
With such a deal, Ngakoue’s annual salary would be lower than just two pass rushers: Khalil Mack ($23.5 million per year) and Aaron Donald ($22.5 million per year). However, for a franchise that has struggled this past decade to find a true pass-rushing threat on the edge, an extension is definitely worth considering.
Since entering the league in 2016, Ngakoue has far exceeded the expectations of a third-round selection and has proven that he clearly deserved to be a first-round pick. Over the span of four seasons, he’s accumulated 122 tackles and 37.5 sacks, a number that puts him only under Tony Brackens when it comes to franchise players taking down the quarterback. Additionally, his ability to create turnovers (has 14 forced fumbles since being drafted) has basically been unmatched since 2016.
The counter-argument for Ngakoue getting paid has been his ability against the run. However, it’s an area of his game where improvement was made in 2019, and at the end of the day, the ability to get to the quarterback in today’s pass-happy league is the trait of his game that counts the most.
When taking all of this into account, one couldn’t blame the Jags for paying Ngakoue if they did. After all, their culture is one that hasn’t left the best impression on the league and its players, and finally paying one of their own could help repair that.
Now, we’d like to hear from you all at home. Should the Jags make Ngakoue the highest-paid defensive end in football? Let us know in the poll below.
[protected-iframe id=”9f9e53efa773aa252a6e7a4937d07e77-105974738-159322853″ info=”https://static.apester.com/js/sdk/latest/apester-sdk.js” height=”396″ class=”apester-media”]