Getty Former Las Vegas Raiders DE Yannick Ngakoue.
After a prolonged wait, former Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Yannick Ngakoue is finally signed with a team. According to an August 3 tweet from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Ngakoue is signing a one-year contract worth $10.5 million with the Chicago Bears.
The top available defensive free agent, DE Yannick Ngakoue, is signing a one-year, $10.5 million deal, including $10 million guaranteed with the Chicago Bears.
His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, confirmed the deal Thursday night.
There aren’t many defenders in the NFL who are consistent as Ngakoue. In a seven-year career, he has never had fewer than 8.0 sacks in a season. He has only missed a total of four regular season games throughout his career. In a league where eight edge rushers are making more than $20 million a season, per Over the Cap, getting Ngakoue at $10.5 million is a steal for Chicago.
Ngakoue is about to be on his sixth team in five seasons so he’s had a hard time sticking in one location. He thought he found a long-term home with the Raiders in 2021 and led the team with 10.0 sacks that season. However, the team hired Dave Ziegler to replace Mike Mayock as general manager and he traded him to the Indianapolis Colts.
Ngakoue only has a one-year deal with the Bears so it remains to be seen how long he’ll stick around. He’s only 28 years old and doesn’t have a concerning injury history. He could be a productive player for several more years if a team is willing to give him a multi-year deal.
Tyree Wilson Among Favorites to Win Defensive Rookie of the Year
The Raiders replaced Yannick Ngakoue with Chandler Jones last year in hopes he would be a better fit in the defense. Jones struggled and only had 4.5 sacks in 15 games, which was the second-lowest total of his 11-year career. The Raiders decided to add former Texas Tech defensive end Tyree Wilson with the seventh overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Though Wilson has been held out of training camp due to a foot injury, expectations are still high for him as a rookie. NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein placed him as No. 6 on his list of Defensive Rookie of the Year candidates.
“The biggest concern for Wilson, as of this writing, is getting back to 100% health as he works his way back from the foot injury he suffered last season,” Zierlein wrote in a July 25 column. “He was placed on the non-football injury list last week. Wilson’s freaky length allows him to separate from tackles and hound the pocket. He has rare stalk-and-capture talent once he’s chasing runners on the perimeter. Wilson would be higher on the list if there wasn’t a question about when he would be ready to play.”
Maxx Crosby Ranked as 17th-Best Player in NFL
The Raiders defensive line has big-time potential. Chandler Jones could be a future Hall of Famer and Tyree Wilson has all the tools to be a star. Plus, the defensive line already has one of the best players in the NFL. The NFL revealed its Top 100 Players of the 2023 season list and Maxx Crosby came in at No. 17.
Crosby finished the 2022 season with a career-high 12.5 sacks and led the NFL with 22 tackles for loss. He has established himself as one of the premier defenders in the league and is still only 25 years old. If Jones can return to form and Wilson can live up to his draft status, the Raiders should have a strong pass rush this year.
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Ex-Raiders Sack Leader Signs $10.5 Million Contract With Bears: Report