Reports: Jaguars Agree to Trade Yannick Ngakoue to Vikings

After nearly six months of back-and-forth discussions, twitter tirades and the relationship between player and franchise falling apart in live time in the view of the public, the drama-filled standoff between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Yannick Ngakoue appears to have finally come to a close.

According to multiple reports (with the first coming from Adam Schefter of ESPN), the Jaguars have agreed to a trade with the Minnesota Vikings for the fifth-year defensive end. The Vikings will get Ngakoue, while the Jaguars getting a second-round selection in 2021 and a conditional fifth-round selection in 2022.

Jaguars agreed to trade franchise DE Yannick Ngakoue to Minnesota for a second- and conditional fifth-round pick that could go as high a third-round pick, league sources tell ESPN. Ngakoue still has to sign his tender, but trade is in place and Ngakoue is expected to be a Viking.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 30, 2020

The Jaguars placed the $17.7 million franchise tag tender on Ngakoue in March, but to date Ngakoue has yet to sign it or report to camp. According to Schefter, the conditions of the second draft pick are as described below:

Fifth-round pick becomes a fourth-round pick if Ngakoue goes to the Pro Bowl this season, or it becomes a third if Ngakoue goes to Pro Bowl and Vikings win the Super Bowl.

The Jaguars now have 10 picks in the 2021 NFL Draft, including four in the first two rounds thanks to the trades of Ngakoue and cornerback Jalen Ramsey, which netted the Jaguars a 2021 first-round pick. They have eight picks within the drafts first five rounds, just a year after selecting 12 rookies in 2020.

For Ngakoue, he has finally gotten his long-awaited trade out of Jacksonville after his relationship with the team went sour. Ngakoue has been at odds with the Jaguars front office since the 2019 training camp, a time in which Ngakoue attempted to seek out a new contract but the Tom Coughlin-led Jaguars front office cut off negotiations quickly, leading to a holdout from Ngakoue and, eventually, this offseason full of drama.

For the Jaguars, they have now lost yet another premier defender who was a key part to their defensive success over the last several years. Ngakoue was the last of six Pro Bowlers left from the team's 2017 defense left on the roster, with Calais Campbell, A.J. Bouye, Telvin Smith, Malik Jackson and Telvin Smith all leaving the roster before him.

Jacksonville made sure to take some actions to prepare for the eventual loss of Ngakoue during the offseason, but it remains to be seen just how the team can replace his consistent production. The Jaguars will be banking on rookie first-round pick K'Lavon Chaisson, who now figures to be the team's primary No. 2 edge defender behind Josh Allen.

In four seasons, Ngakoue has recorded 37.5 sacks (second-most in franchise history), 14 forced fumbles and 42 tackles for loss. Ngakoue recorded eight sacks, four forced fumbles and tied a career-high in tackles for loss with 13 last season.