NFL free agency rumors: 3 players Baltimore Ravens should target this offseason

1. Yannick Ngakoue

Yes, Yannick Ngakoue was already a member of the Ravens. Although, he is going to be a free agent this offseason after not securing the long-term deal he sought before and during the season.

Ngakoue was traded from the Jacksonville Jaguars to the Minnesota Vikings after things soured between him and the front office. He played four years with the Jags before suiting up for just six games with the Vikings. Then, he was shipped to the Ravens.

During his nine games with the Ravens, Ngakoue had three sacks in three starts. In fairness, it is generally unfair to truly evaluate a player after a midseason trade in most scenarios due to the learning curve of a new playbook and team scheme. This is especially the case when that same player was traded twice in one season.

Ngakoue tallied five sacks in his six games with the Vikings, and he gathered 37.5 in 63 games with the Jaguars. At just 25-years old, turning 26, he is due to progress and also get a large payday.

The Ravens need an edge rusher and keeping Ngakoue in house is the answer. Matt Judon is going to be a free agent as well this offseason, so keeping the higher potential, younger option in Ngakoue is presumably worth the price it will cost.

Spotrac projects Ngakoue’s yearly salary to be around $15.4 million, which could translate out to a deal that looks like four years for over $61 million. Of course, this would absorb a lot of the team’s available cap, so other moves will likely be made to increase the cap situation.

Productive edge rushers are hard to come by, especially those who are still young and project to develop even more. He could be a mainstay on the defense.