Jacksonville Jaguars: The Yannick Ngakoue saga continues

Will the Jacksonville Jaguars and defensive end Yannick Ngakoue find a common ground before the start of NFL training camp?

The more things change with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the more they stay the same with defensive end Yannick Ngakoue.

As the July 15 deadline approaches, Ngakoue is still drawing a line in the sand as he does not want to sign a long-term deal with the Jaguars and appears adamant about not putting pen to paper in signing the $17.8M franchise tag the Jaguars have offered him for one season.

The banter by Ngakoue, which got pretty testy over the offseason, has slowed but no deal has been worked out and no trade has been consummated. There is no word if there has been a team willing to make an offer for former Maryland star, who received little if any real trade interest around the NFL draft.

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"Per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com on his Twitter account, “A franchise tag situation to watch approaching July 15: Jaguars DE Yannick Ngakoue. I’m told nothing has changed with his stance – he still desires a trade – and doesn’t have immediate plans to sign the tag. This could bleed well into training camp, absent deal with a new team.”"

Ngakoue figures to be one of the big names to watch the next couple of weeks, mainly to see if he will soften his stance. The shorter the time period the fewer options he has. The Jaguars’ front office has not budged as well. And with a talented pass rusher who currently is a man without a team, I’m interested to see who flinches first.

The Jacksonville Jaguars did add more pass rushers to their defense this offseason in free agency and then draft K’Lavon Chaisson with the 20th pick in the NFL Draft. Despite the potential of this being an overhaul on that side of the ball, the Jaguars became a more athletic and faster team at all three levels of the defense.

"“Jacksonville did try to fill some of the voids left by those players by signing Joe Schobert in free agency and drafting CJ Henderson and K’Lavon Chaisson,” writes Nicholas Perlich of With the First Pick. “Even with those additions, however, this roster on paper still lacks a lot of talent. Specifically on the defensive side of the ball.”"

Perlich believes the biggest mistake the team made this offseason was not unloading Ngakoue, who could still bring draft capital, but possibly not what Jacksonville Jaguars general manager David Caldwell was looking for. Ngakoue can still sign his contract tender and report for training camp at the end of the month. He can also refuse to sign the deal and sit out the 2020 season.

There is still a possibility he and the Jaguars can come an agreement where he will sign the franchise tender and seek a trade before the start of camp.

Perlich believes a deal for Ngakoue can still get done.

"“There is no shortage of suitors for an up-and-coming star pass rusher like Ngakoue. The fact that the Jaguars haven’t found a trade partner is rather surprising,” He adds. “The franchise could regret not trading him earlier as their leverage in trade negotiations is decreasing with each passing day. It will be an especially bad look for the franchise if Ngakoue does in fact hold out most of the season and the Jaguars lose a talented player Ngakoue for nothing next offseason.”"