Jaguars place franchise tag on defensive end Yannick Ngakoue

In an expected move, the Jacksonville Jaguars have officially placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on star defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, the team announced today.

Ngakoue and the Jaguars have undergone unsuccessful negotiations since just prior to his final year with the team. Last Monday, a report surfaced that the team would be placing the franchise tender on Ngakoue, and hours later the fourth-year defensive end stated he no longer had any intentions on signing a long-term deal with the team.

By placing the franchise tag on Ngakoue, the Jaguars will be on the hook for a one-year ~$19,316,000 deal (pending new NFL salary cap), according to OverTheCap.com. With the franchise tag, Ngakoue will not become a free agent when the new league year begins on March 18th.

A non-exclusive tag means the Jaguars could receive two first-round picks as compensation if a team wishes to extend an offer sheet to the young pass rusher. The Jaguars would also have the right of first refusal.

Since being selected by the Jaguars in the third round of the 2016 NFL Draft, Ngakoue has accumulated 122 tackles (105 solos), 42 tackles for loss, and 37.5 sacks (second-most in franchise history).

The Jaguars currently have ~$32,333,036 in cap space currently, according to OverTheCap. With the franchise tag being placed on Ngakoue, the team will have ~$13,017,036 in space entering free agency.

The last player to be franchise tagged by the Jaguars was kicker Josh Scobee in 2012. Scobee ultimately did not play on the tag, and was signed to a new deal shortly thereafter.