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The Jacksonville Jaguars got some good news on Tuesday prior to the start of their first Organized Team Activity (OTA) practice of the 2019 NFL season. Defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, who had skipped the latest rounds of voluntary workouts, will be reporting for the first week of OTAs, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
#Jaguars star DE Yannick Ngakoue, despite being in the final year of his rookie deal, is expected to be at OTAs beginning today, source said. Ngakoue will lead on that defensive line, starting with the voluntary workouts.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 21, 2019
Ngakoue is entering the final year of his rookie contract, so it’s pretty clear he is angling for a new long term deal, as he should be. The former third round pick has played well above his rookie deal, emerging as one of the more disruptive pass rushers in the NFL since his rookie season.
Yannick Ngakoue has racked up 29.5 sacks over the past three seasons along with 70 quarterbacks hits and 10 forced fumbles. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2017 and nearly had back-to-back double digit sack seasons, missing out in 2018 with 9.5 sacks, even with a slow start to the year.
Ngakoue reported to the first set of voluntary workouts, then skipped and is now back again for OTAs, so I think it’s pretty clear that he is looking for a new deal but has shown the team a sign of good faith by initially reporting, making his point, and coming back into the fold.
I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up with a new long-term deal prior to the start of training camp.