Ravens OLB Matthew Judon welcomes the addition of DE Yannick Ngakoue

Baltimore Ravens Defensive Coordinator Don ‘Wink’ Martindale has to be the most grateful assistant coach in the entire National Football League, and he has second-year General Manager Eric DeCosta to thank for it.

In the last year, he has given him First-Team All-Pro cornerback Marcus Peters, five-time Pro Bowl defensive end Calais Campbell, and sensational rookie inside linebacker Patrick Queen to work with in addition to his already loaded depth chart on defense.

When DeCosta told Martindale and the rest of the defensive coaches that he had acquired Pro Bowl pass-rusher Yannick Ngakoue via trade from the Minnesota Vikings, they gave him a standing ovation and Wink told the stellar front office executive that he is his “favorite person in the world.”

While the addition of Ngakoue immediately makes the Ravens better and will give their already ascending pass rush a major boost, some were wondering how receptive franchise-tagged outside linebacker Matthew Judon would be to the news since both he and his fellow fifth-year pro are playing on one-year deals and are seeking new contracts.

“We got Yannick in here. I think that’s just going to propel our defense to where we want to go,” Judon said. “I think we were playing good football, but I also think we can play a lot better – more four-man rushes, getting more pressure on the quarterback and making more negative plays.”

Judon welcomes the addition of Ngakoue to the fold of the 5-1 Ravens who have their sights set on winning a championship this year. He praised DeCosta and the rest of the front office for making an already stout unit even stronger.

“The front office assessed where we were and they got us some more help. Eric and those guys up there, Ozzie [Newsome], they did a great job. They saw an opportunity and they seized that opportunity,” Judon said.

He also acknowledged that even though the Ravens pass rush had begun to heat up heading into the bye week, there was still some room for improvement and Ngakoue could help them generate pressure on opposing signal-callers at an even higher rate.

“Me as a leader and thinking we can do better, I think we can execute at a higher level,” Judon said. “He’s an excellent player. I think he has a nose for the ball, I think he knows how to get to the quarterback, I think he knows how to win rushes.”

Judon broke out last season with a career-high and team-leading 9.5 sacks and earned his first Pro Bowl nod in the process. He isn’t on pace to eclipse his 2019 total in sacks with just two through six games, but he believes the presence of Ngakoue will create more opportunism for the other edge defenders.

 Opposing teams might want to roll their protection to keep him from wreaking their offensive game plans which would consequentially free up Judon and others to do just that from the opposite edge or up the middle on stunts and blitzes.

“He’s a great player. He demands attention,” Judon said. “That’s just going to help us as outside linebacker and edge rushers be better. I think our room got a lot better. Teams are going to have to pick their poison.”

Judon believes that Ngakoue is acclimating well to the team and will thrive in this defense by being himself but also by adjusting his game to how they play defense in Baltimore which isn’t too far off from his own style since he grew up in Maryland during the golden age of Ravens defenses.

“He’s a pretty cool dude, knows the game of football. He’s just trying to learn our system as fast as he can and get in where he can fit in. But I think he’s going to do very well for us. He’s going to come in here and bring his style of play, but also adapt to the way we play football.”

Martindale is a true players coach and empowers his defenders the freedom to play their individual games within the framework of the defense as long as it is fast, physical, and disciplined.

“The way we play football, it allows players to be themselves,” Judon said. “Whatever your brand of football is, we just want it to be physical. If you’re a pass rusher, just pass rush physical and execute at a high level.”

Ngakoue will appear in his first game as Ravens against the team’s archrival when the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers come to town on Sunday for an AFC North showdown in Week Eight.

He’ll have a prime opportunity earn his stripes or should I say feathers in the best rivalry in all of sports where legends for both franchises made names for and endeared themselves to their respective fanbases.

“We’re going to see, aren’t we? Talk is cheap,” Judon said. “We can talk about it as long as we want, but we’re going to see. And it’s probably our biggest game so far [with Pittsburgh] coming here 6-0. It’s Steelers versus Ravens.”