With No Long-Term Deal, What Is Next for the Jaguars and Yannick Ngakoue?

An offseason of uncertainty surrounding the future of Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue got no closer to its final destination on Wednesday, leading to one key question: what is next?

What is known for certain is that wherever Ngakoue plays in 2020, be it in Jacksonville or elsewhere via a trade, is that he will be playing on the one-year franchise tag tender, one of 12 players who will be doing so this season. After that, everything else is still relatively up in the air.

Ngakoue and the Jaguars have been in a months-long back-and-forth struggle, with the 25-year-old former Pro Bowler stating early in the offseason that he had no interest in signing a multi-year deal with the Jaguars following the conclusion of his rookie deal, which ran its course following the 2019 season.

"The Jaguars are aware I no longer have interest in signing a long term contract in Jacksonville," Ngakoue tweeted on March 2, weeks before the Jaguars placed the franchise tag on him. "Duval, I love you and gave you guys everything I got. I’m thankful for the journey and look forward to continuing my career elsewhere."

Ngakoue, the team's third-round selection in the 2016 NFL Draft, has been seeking a long-term contract reportedly worth $22 million per year, which would make him the league's second-highest-paid defensive end behind Myles Garrett, but it is clear he doesn't want that deal from the Jaguars.

Ngakoue has been one of the Jaguars' best players since being drafted, and the young and talented pass-rusher has been attempting to get a big-money extension since the 2019 offseason. Ngakoue, who has 37.5 sacks in his career (second-most in Jaguars' history), 42 tackles for loss, and 14 forced fumbles, wasn't able to make much headway with the Jaguars' front office in 2019, leading to the fractured relationship between the two sides in 2020.

With July 15's deadline for franchise tagged players to sign multi-year contracts coming and going without Ngakoue receiving a new deal from the Jaguars, or any team, the soap opera is now bound to continue and potentially bleed into training camp.

So, what is next? That is up to both the Jaguars and Ngakoue considering each side holds a considerable amount of power in their hands. The Jaguars are in a position of leverage when it comes to Ngakoue because they can simply opt to not trade him, no matter his pleas. They dug their heels in with Jalen Ramsey last October until a lucrative offer worth taking came in, and this appears to be their strategy once again.

Jacksonville could hope Ngakoue eventually gives in and reports to training camp to play out the 2020 season on the franchise tag, no matter how unlikely that appears at this point. The franchise tag would pay Ngakoue over $17 million for one season, so the Jaguars could theorize that the veteran pass-rusher will eventually concede, at least for 16 games.

Jacksonville could also trade Ngakoue, though that too appears unlikely. Since any team that trades for Ngakoue won't be able to sign him to a long-term deal until after the 2020 season, they could be wary of trading for a player who is essentially a one-year rental.

The best example of such a case is Jadeveon Clowney, who the Houston Texans traded to the Seattle Seahawks last August. Here is the compensation the Texans got for Clowney, who was traded after the deadline, compared to the compensation the Kansas City Chiefs and Seattle Seahawks got for Dee Ford and Frank Clark following their trading of the franchise-tagged players earlier in the same offseason.

Texans' haul for Clowney (traded on Aug. 31): OLB Jacob Martin, OLB Barkevious Mingo, and a third-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Chiefs' haul for Ford (traded on March 12): Second-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Seahawks' haul for Clark (traded on April 23): First- and third-round picks in the 2019 NFL Draft and a second-round pick in 2020.

If the Jaguars were going to accept a minimal offer like the Texans did for Clowney, wouldn't they have already done so by now? Logic says yes, but perhaps the Jaguars change their tune when it comes to compensation as the season draws closer.

As for Ngakoue, he holds the power of simply being the player in this situation. Ngakoue could feasibly opt to sit out a year like Le'Veon Bell a few years ago, even if their situations aren't completely comparable. At this point, this may be the most likely option because it seems Ngakoue is hell-bent on playing anywhere but Jacksonville. How the NFL operates in terms of players opting out of the 2020 season will be another factor.

Ultimately, no deadline or franchise tag can force Ngakoue to play for the Jaguars in 2020. While Jacksonville holds his immediate future in their hands in terms of what team he will be on, it is still up to him if he takes the field for said team.

As of today, there doesn't appear to be an end in sight for the bitter situation the Jaguars and their star pass-rusher have found themselves in. No team has made an offer the Jaguars want, and Ngakoue is no closer to mending things with the Jaguars and taking the field for them in the fall.

Ngakoue's options may be limited to the Jaguars only in 2020, but a few dominoes still have to fall before we truly know what is next in this saga.