JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Yannick Ngakoue is doing his best to get out of town.
The Jaguars defensive end said during an appearance on ESPN’s NFL Live on Tuesday that it’s time for both he and the franchise to part ways.
It’s the latest effort in what has become an offseason blitz by Ngakoue to try and pressure the Jaguars into trading him. He’s previously taken to Instagram and Twitter to tell fans — and the franchise — that he’d prefer to play elsewhere.
The Jaguars haven’t relented thus far, and they don’t have to. Jacksonville his applied the non-exclusive franchise tag to Ngakoue in 2020, meaning he’ll play for roughly an $18 million salary if the sides don’t agree to a contract extension.
According to Ngakoue, that won’t happen.
"The organization had the opportunity to keep me long term last offseason. Talks broke off. Everything happens for a reason, and not everything lasts forever,” Ngakoue said.
“Things come to an end, and it's time for me to move on to the next chapter of my career. I'm forever thankful for what Jacksonville has brought to me and my family, but it's time to move on."
Jacksonville, which is coming off of a 6-10 season, has languished since reaching the AFC championship game in 2017. It has jettisoned most defensive starters from that squad, with only Ngakoue, defensive tackle Abry Jones and linebacker Myles Jack remaining.
Ngakoue has used social media much of the offseason to express his desire to play elsewhere, although his options are limited due to the franchise tag. Under the new collective bargaining agreement, a holdout like previous seasons would be substantially more costly for players.
“Well, I’m not really sure what team I will be landing at but what type of team that I would love to join is a team that has great culture,” Ngakoue said.
I really want to be a part of a team has great culture, and winning is a habit. I don’t want to be part of the team where losing is, is, is a norm or anything of that nature. I want to be a part of something special. Also, just I want to a place where the community I can make a great impact in the community and just reach out to younger people that look up to me."