The Philadelphia Eagles didn’t need Yannick Ngakoue after all

Welp, the Philadelphia Eagles didn’t need Yannick Ngakoue after all.

For much of the offseason, the idea of Yannick Ngakoue becoming a member of the Philadelphia Eagles felt like a foregone conclusion to a certain segment of the fanbase.

Call it ‘The Buddy Hield Effect’, where fans start wanting a player they perceive wants them back, but when spring turned to summer, and the ex-Maryland third-round pick was somehow still a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the banging on the table grew louder and louder.

Objectively, I got it.

More from Section 215

• 4 Eagles on the Bubble Who Have Clinched Their 53-Man Roster Spots
• Best Pennsylvania Sportsbook Promos: Win $650 GUARANTEED Bonus PLUS $100 off NFL Sunday Ticket
• 3 Punters the Eagles Must Target to Replace Arryn Siposs
• Cowboys Trey Lance Trade Proves How Screwed They Are With Dak Prescott
• Devon Allen Took Britain Covey’s Job on Eagles

At the time, the Eagles only had one proven top-30 starting defensive end in Brandon Graham, who’d never quite lived up to the ‘elite’ moniker, and a young collection of mid-round picks (and Derek Barnett) who had yet to really arrive on the national stage.

In Ngakoue, the Eagles could parlay a Day 2 pick into a 24-year-old pure edge rusher who’d amassed 37.5 sacks over his first four professional seasons in the league. Sure, the cheap years of his rookie contract were in the rearview, as he was set to play out the season on the franchise tag, but surely the Eagles could lock him into a lucrative, long-term deal, even with their 2021 salary cap in shambles.

Throw in Ngakoue’s, um, unusual negotiating tactic of publicly trying to beef with Jaguars co-owner/AEW CEO Tony Khan on Twitter before the draft, and the speculation that he’d be moved hit a fever pitch. Fast forward to August 31st, a week before the season started, Ngakoue was officially on the move, only not to the City of Brotherly Love.

For the price of a 2021 second-round pick and a conditional fifth-round pick, the Minnesota Vikings acquired Ngakoue in a perceived push for championship glory. Paired up with two-time Pro Bowler Danielle Hunter, Ngakoue was perceived as the missing piece to a top-tier defensive front, easily replacing franchise stalwart Everson Griffen for roughly the same money in 2020.

That, obviously, didn’t happen, as Hunter ended up on IR, and the Vikings have all but been eliminated from playoff contention in the fiercely competitive NFC North. So, with Ngakoue only under contract for the next 10 games with very little reason or ability to lock him into a long-term deal, the Vikings attempted to save face and flip their prized offseason addition in a transparent attempt to save face.

A few calls later, Ngakoue was back in his home state of Maryland as a member of the clearly all-in Baltimore Ravens for a 2021 third-round pick and a 2022 fifth-round pick. And honestly? I could not be any less bummed out about it.

But how could this be? Ngakoue is off to a great start to the 2020 NFL season, recording five sacks in six games, and could thrive in a downhill, attacking 4-3 scheme. Well, do you know who else is off to a great start of the 2020 season in a downhill, attacking 4-3 scheme? The defensive ends the Eagles already have on their roster.

Through the first seven games of the season, the Eagles’ defensive ends have amassed 14.5 sacks – six by Brandon Graham, 3.5 by Derek Barnett, three by Josh Sweat, 1.5 by Genard Avery, and .5 by Vinny Curry. Of those five defensive ends, only one, Graham, has appeared in 50 percent of the Eagles’ defensive snaps, which is largely thanks to his inside-out versatility. Even if Ngakoue were to take over as the team’s unquestioned second starter, it’s hard to imagine his production wouldn’t take a dip while averaging 12-14 fewer defensive snaps.

Ngakoue is also one of the least effective run defenders in the NFL due to his minus size and propensity for disengaging when he’s not rushing the passer. At best, his ceiling in the Eagles’ scheme was Chris Long in 2017, aka a really good player who certainly isn’t worth an eight-digit contract, let alone multiple draft picks. Heck, one could argue that Sweat has flashed more potential as a legitimate three-down defensive end in 2020 than Ngakoue has at any point in his career, a fact that no one should tell him when he goes to the negotiating table at the end of the season.

If the Philadelphia Eagles decide to be buyers at the trade deadline, a decision that is hotly contested to say the least, they can’t be willy nilly with the talent they target. This isn’t a particularly good team capable of having its iron sharpened by external, high-priced iron. No, this is a team with obvious holes across both sides of the field that need to be addressed correctly to have any chance of turning this season around – and fortunately, for the first time in what feels like forever, defensive end is not one of those positions. Now, if Yannick Ngakoue can split his time at wide receiver and middle linebacker, then maybe we’d be talking…