4 Best and realistic Yannick Ngakoue trade landing spots

Yannick Ngakoue could reportedly be traded sooner rather than later.

Yannick Ngakoue has not been shy about the fact that he wants out of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Well before the team placed the franchise tag on him, the former third-rounder was demanding a trade, arguing with the front office on social media and generally appearing unhappy. But the Jaguars have remained steadfast about not sending him elsewhere in the NFL if they’re not getting good value in return.

That apparently may be happening. On Wednesday, Michael Lombardi of The Athletic reported that Ngakoue could be traded “today or tomorrow” and that a second-rounder could get it done. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero supplemented Lombardi’s report, saying it would take more than a Round 2 pick to get the trade done. But since he wasn’t traded on Wednesday, that means a deal could fall into place on Thursday that sends the pass-rusher elsewhere.

Over his four NFL seasons with Jacksonville, Ngakoue has accrued an impressive 37.5 sacks to this point and has been a consistent presence off the edge. There is no shortage of teams who should be interested in making a trade for him.

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At the same time, every team has their own situation and some teams obviously make more sense than others, be it because of what’s being reported or just because of the fit. These four NFL teams, in particular, would be the best spots for a Yannick Ngakoue trade.

Four NFL teams who make sense for a Yannick Ngakoute trade

4. Miami Dolphins

Full disclosure, there hasn’t really been any buzz or talk of Ngakoue moving further south in the state of Florida. Despite that, it’s been hard for me to shake the notion of how dangerous he could be under Brian Flores with the Dolphins while also fitting into their long-term plans.

While Miami spent big on their defense in free agency this offseason, their group of edge rushers is largely comprised of above-average veterans but no one with the high-end potential of Ngakoue, especially in terms of the current Jag’s age at just 25 years old. He would immediately come in and be another building block, along with newcomer Byron Jones on the defense.

Furthermore, the Dolphins are flush with draft capital after they aggressively began their rebuild last offseason. They could send Jacksonville one of two second-round picks and additional later-round picks to make this trade happen and get a player who would continue reshaping the roster.

3. Las Vegas Raiders

Mid-round rookie Maxx Crosby was one of the most pleasant surprises of the Raiders’ 2019 season as the argument could be made that he out-performed the edge rusher the team took No. 4 overall, Clelin Ferrell. Regardless, it’s clear that Jon Gruden and Mike Mayock’s club have a pair of quality young pass-rushers that they can conceivably rely on. But in a division with the Kansas City Chiefs, they need more firepower than that to compete consistently.

Gruden and Mayock have never been shy about taking risks. Whether it was trading away Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper or targeting “their guys” early in the draft, they stick to their guns. If they correctly feel that Ngakoue could make the cross-country move to Las Vegas and give this defense an elite group of young pass-rushers, they should be willing to pay the price reportedly being asked.

2. Seattle Seahawks

Seattle is another team that we haven’t heard any rumors about being connected to Ngakoue recently but everything else would suggest that they could be in play for making such a trade.

For starters, the team has clearly been eyeing improving their defensive front. They were in contact with Everson Griffen prior to him landing in Dallas and the Seahawks have also reportedly been talking with Clay Matthews and Jadeveon Clowney. Speaking of Clowney, the Seahawks also traded for Clowney on the tag last year, so they’re not averse to this type of move.

On top of that, trading for Jamal Adams earlier this offseason shows an aggressive mentality from general manager John Schneider and the front office right now. If he wants to go all-in with that approach, then trading for Ngakoue would fill a major need and surely improve the Seahawks’ Super Bowl chances.

1. New York Jets

After getting some bad info about the Ravens being a possible destination, the one team that Lombardi mentioned in connection to a Yannick Ngakoue trade was the New York Jets. He stated that he was unsure if the deal would get done but that general manager Joe Douglas was “trying” to make such a deal happen.

The Jets have long been in need of a consistent individual pass-rusher and Ngakoue obviously fits the bill. Moreover, after trading Jamal Adams to Seattle, they are rich with draft capital. Trading a second-round pick and a player to Jacksonville wouldn’t kill their draft prospects and, in fact, might be their best course of action as a second-round pick isn’t likely to net them a player with the effectiveness Ngakoue has proven to possess at a position of extreme need.