The Vikings have made a major move to upgrade their defense, trading two draft picks for disgruntled Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue on Sunday morning. This is a big-time addition for a defensive line that lost Everson Griffen this offseason, with the Vikings landing another outstanding young pass rusher to pair with superstar Danielle Hunter.
The details are still being finalized, but the Vikings and Ngakoue reportedly agreed to a one-year deal worth roughly $13 million, which is a significant pay cut from the $17.8 million he would've received had he signed his franchise tender with Jacksonville. The Vikings have apparently made it clear that they intend to sign Ngakoue to a long-term deal next offseason.
So why did the Vikings make this move, and what does it mean for them in 2020 and beyond? Let's examine all of the angles of this trade.
Why Ngakoue was available
One of the key things that made this trade possible was that Ngakoue wanted badly to get out of Jacksonville, the team that drafted him in the third round in 2016. Ngakoue was hoping to receive a lucrative contract extension last offseason, but that never came to fruition; he turned down an offer of $19 million per year, and then negotiations were abruptly broken off. As a result, he dropped hints throughout the 2019 season that he was dissatisfied with his situation with the Jaguars.
Things went to another level this offseason. In early March, Ngakoue used social media to make his plans incredibly clear. "The Jaguars are aware I no longer have interest in signing a long term contract in Jacksonville," he tweeted. "I’m thankful for the journey and look forward to continuing my career elsewhere."
Despite that tweet, the Jaguars applied the franchise tag to Ngakoue a couple weeks later. They remained adamant that they wouldn't trade him unless they received adequate compensation – they were reportedly seeking a first-round pick – which led to a somewhat ugly situation playing out in the public eye. Ngakoue repeatedly took to Twitter to urge the Jaguars to trade him, and in April, he lashed out at the franchise and engaged in a contentious back-and-forth with co-owner Tony Khan.
On July 15th, the deadline passed for teams to sign Franchise Players to long-term deals. But Ngakoue still hadn't signed his tender and never reported to Jaguars training camp, so the team continued exploring trades. In the end, they accepted the Vikings' offer of a 2021 second-round pick and a 2022 conditional Day 3 pick, with Ngakoue taking a pay cut to get out of Jacksonville and land with an organization that has made the playoffs in three of the last five years.
Why the Vikings made this move
Since arriving in Minnesota in 2014, Mike Zimmer has always had two excellent pass rushers on the edge of his defensive line. First it was Griffen and Brian Robison, and for the past five years it was Griffen and an emerging superstar in Hunter, the youngest player to ever reach 50 career sacks. Zimmer's 4-3 defense frequently relies on four-man rushes, which means the defensive ends must be able to generate consistent pressure from the edge.
With Griffen departing this offseason, the Vikings were in the market for another pass rusher. They actually tried to bring Griffen back even after he had bid a public goodbye to the organization, but he ended up signing with the Cowboys. When that happened, the Vikings' pursuit of Ngakoue "stepped up," according to the Star Tribune's Ben Goessling.
"We’ve been looking for another pass rusher for quite a while," Zimmer said on Sunday.
Ifeadi Odenigbo was in line to start opposite Hunter, but he has never been a three-down player at the college or NFL level. Adding Ngakoue gives the Vikings another young star at defensive end; the former Jaguar is an incredibly dynamic and explosive player who has 37.5 sacks and 14 forced fumbles in four years. This means they can now keep Odenigbo in the situational role he thrived in last season (more on that in a second).
Another motivation for the Vikings to land a star pass rusher was the youth and inexperience of their cornerback group. With the team replacing all three of its starting corners, the ability to create a lot of pressure will make life easier for guys like Mike Hughes, Holton Hill, and rookies Cameron Dantzler and Jeff Gladney, all of whom are 23 years old or younger. "I think that’s important when you have a young secondary," Zimmer said of adding another pass rusher.
Why the Vikings were able to make this move
Ngakoue wanting out of Jacksonville was a major factor in this trade coming to life, but the Vikings also put themselves in position to land a player who would've helped every team in the NFL. For starters, this is the latest example of GM Rick Spielman's draft strategy – which consists of frequently trading back and accumulating picks – paying off. The Vikings had the draft capital to feel comfortable surrendering their second-rounder next year and a conditional third-to-fifth rounder in 2022. Even without the second-rounder, the Vikings are still projected to have 11 picks in 2021.
Another thing that made this possible from Minnesota's end is the deal they didn't make with Dalvin Cook. The Vikings' star running back has been seeking a contract extension this offseason, but the organization didn't meet his asking price with their offers and talks have since broken down. If the Vikings doled out a significant amount of money to Cook, it's unlikely that they would've been able to trade for Ngakoue and make things work from a salary cap perspective in 2020.
What this means for the Vikings in 2020
The Vikings still have to create some salary cap space in order to add a roughly $13 million one-year deal for Ngakoue to their books. That will likely come via some sort of restructure to another player's contract, perhaps by turning base salary into signing bonus money and spreading it over several years.
Once they are able to finalize things with Ngakoue and get him through the COVID-19 testing protocols, it shouldn't take long to get him acclimated with the defense and ready to go for Week 1 against the Packers in two weeks. He will fit in nicely at Griffen's old spot at right defensive end; Ngakoue has played on both sides during his career, but spent the majority of his time last year on the right side. The Vikings have said that they plan on keeping Hunter on the left side, which makes sense considering the historic success he has had from that spot.
This move means Odenigbo is no longer in line to be a starting defensive end, but it doesn't mean he won't play a major role in 2020. Ngakoue is a true pass-rusher who struggles in run defense and has never played more than 75 percent of the Jaguars' defensive snaps. There will still be room for Odenigbo to see snaps as a rotational pass-rusher, including lining up at defensive tackle on obvious passing downs. Odenigbo has experience playing on the inside and has shown that he can create pressure from both the interior and the edge. Given the Vikings' lack of depth at defensive end, this will make their overall pass rush significantly more dangerous.
Adding a player like Ngakoue benefits everyone on the Vikings' defense. It means Hunter won't get as much attention as he otherwise would have, opens things up for the defensive tackles, and makes the secondary's life easier with opposing QBs facing more pressure.
What this means for the Vikings in the future
While adding Ngakoue was a win-now move for the Vikings, it was also about the future. He won't be 26 until March and, like Hunter, is just entering his prime. The Vikings plan on signing him to a long-term deal next offseason and keeping their DE duo together for many years to come. They're also betting that Andre Patterson can help take Ngakoue's game to another level both this year and beyond. In the event that he signs elsewhere next offseason, the Vikings would likely receive a third-round compensatory pick, mitigating some of the pain of losing him.
Things will start to get interesting when it comes to the financial side, making the 2021 offseason a great test for the Vikings' front office, especially cap guru Rob Brzezinski. Ngakoue, Cook, and Anthony Harris will all be entering free agency, so the team will have some decisions to make. Hunter may also want a new contract, and Harrison Smith could be in line for an extension.
Signing Ngakoue to a long-term deal – potentially worth over $20 million per year – will likely be the first priority. The bottom line is that the Vikings are going to have to find some ways to clear up cap space. Moving on from Riley Reiff and moving Ezra Cleveland to left tackle could be a good place to start, but it'll take more than just that.
Those decisions can wait. For now, the focus is on 2020. The Vikings just added one of the better young pass rushers in the league and have significantly improved their defense heading into a season where they plan to contend for an NFC North title and more.
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