Short and long term ripple effects Yannick Ngakoue trade could have on Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens made one of the biggest midseason trades last Thursday when they acquired Pro Bowl pass-rusher Yannick Ngakoue from the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for a reported 2021 third-round pick and a conditional 2022 fifth-round pick.
Here is a breakdown of the potential ripple effects his arrival could have on the team’s roster in the immediate and foreseeable future:
Short term-
Ngakoue is one of the premier pass rushers in the NFL and immediately improves a Ravens’ pass rush that had been a work in progress but began heating up in their two games before the bye week.
He recorded five sacks in six games with the Vikings and will be reuniting with his former Jacksonville Jaguars teammate Calais Campbell who he had some of his best production playing with.
His presence doesn’t mean that Defensive Coordinator Don ‘Wink’ Martindale won’t continue to blitz at his league-high rate of 46.1 percent, but it does give them the systematic flexibility and versatility to generate more pressure without sending as many defenders after opposing quarterbacks
However, if he does decide to send a blitz, they’ll be able to get home quicker because Ngakoue will be there crashing off the edge with his great speed, quickness, and length.
This acquisition bodes especially well for their ability to pressure quarterbacks with just a four-man rush. It will particularly come in handy versus savvy signal-callers and those who have quick releases.
The ability to not get pressure without sending a blitz and not getting much when they did cost the Ravens dearly in their only loss of the season.
Against the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs in Week Three, the Ravens failed to generate much pressure on Superbowl MVP Patrick Mahomes and got carved up when they decided to blitz.
Ngakoue will be a tremendous asset in what many believe will be an eventual rematch with Kansas City in the playoffs come January.
Expect for him to be a factor every week the rest of the way starting this week against Ben Roethlisberger and the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers.
Long Term-
While his arrival will provide the Ravens with another horse in their stable of talented pass rushers for the 2020 season, he is only under contract through this year and will be an unrestricted free agent come March.
He isn’t the only edge defender that finds himself playing in a contract year. Veteran Pernell McPhee, fourth-year pro Tyus Bowser, and 2019 Pro Bowler Matthew Judon are all in the final years of their current contracts.
McPhee resigned on a one year deal this offseason and has been looking like his vintage self as of late, Bowser was a second-round pick in 2017 and is playing at a high level in the final year of his rookie deal.
Judon was franchise tagged by the Ravens this offseason and while he doesn’t have gaudy sack totals through six games, he has been superb rushing the passer and in coverage.
Defensive end Jihad Ward primarily lines up on the edge is also having a solid season but is playing on a one-year deal as well after resigning with the team in free agency.
Since Ngakoue was franchise tagged by the Jaguars before being traded to the Vikings in August, neither he nor Judon is eligible to negotiate or sign an extension until the offseason.
That means that the only outside linebacker currently on the Ravens active roster that is under contract beyond this season is second-year pro Jaylon Ferguson.
Even though he has improved greatly as an edge setter in the run game but hasn’t quite lived up to his ‘Sack Daddy’ nickname he earned in college at Louisiana Tech for breaking the FBS career sack record previously held by franchise legend Terrell Suggs. In 20 career games, Ferguson has just 3.5 sacks and 11 quarterback hits.
Given the coveted draft capital that the Ravens General Manager Eric DeCosta gave up getting Ngakoue, his chances for being in Baltimore for the long haul are greater than all the others set to hit the open market.
Ngakoue’s arrival essentially ensures Judon’s departure this offseason. DeCosta won’t be able to retain both with other young cornerstone players coming down the pipeline that need to get paid.
The most notable and pressing of the upcoming bunch would be signing First-Team All-Pro left tackle Ronnie Stanley to an extension if they don’t decide to franchise him in the offseason.
If Judon goes on to be the next in a long line of Ravens’ edge rushers to break the bank elsewhere, it could open the door for Bowser to return to the fold. He’s the less heralded of the two and won’t command nearly the same salary as Judon.
The Ravens won’t be able to keep both, but they can’t afford to lose both either. They are the only true SAM linebackers on the current roster who excel in coverage as well as rushing the passer.
If the Ravens weren’t able to retain at least one of them, that would mean they would have to find a new starter to play opposite of Ngakoue in either free agency or via the draft.
That is easier said than done and neither player would be familiar with Martindale’s system as Judon or Bowser and likely would need some time to acclimate before they could truly flourish.
The acquisition of a pass rusher of Ngakoue’s caliber who can reach or eclipse double-digit sacks every year has the potential to pay major dividends for the Ravens but it will ultimately force them to make some difficult decisions when it comes to the fate of the other players at the position currently on the roster.
The best-case scenario would be to extend Ngakoue and hope he doesn’t want the break the bank, extend Bowser before he hit free agency or let him test the waters a bit and hope he’ll take a little less as well, and resign McPhee for a third time if he is open to playing another year.
