Yannick Ngakoue hasn't played a snap since the 2024 season, but he's not done. The 71.5-sack pass rusher has quietly been putting in work for months, building toward a real shot at getting back on an NFL roster in 2026.
Ngakoue training footage shows him running sprints and grinding through weight work as he preps for a return.
The backstory here matters. Ngakoue has been dealing with an ankle injury dating back to 2023, and rather than try to play through it again, he made the call to sit out the entire 2025 season and let his body actually heal. That's a real sacrifice for a guy who's made his living getting after the quarterback for a decade — no game checks, no highlight reels, just rehab and patience.
It's easy to forget how good Ngakoue has been when he's healthy. A third-round pick by Jacksonville back in 2016, he racked up 37.5 sacks in four seasons with the Jaguars, including a 12-sack, Pro Bowl-caliber campaign in 2017 that also led the league in forced fumbles. Since then he's bounced around — Vikings, Ravens, Raiders, Colts, Bears, and most recently the Patriots, who released him right before the 2024 season finale.
That journeyman path is part of the story too. Ngakoue has never been the biggest name in a defensive front, but he's been a reliable double-digit-sack threat for multiple teams, and 71.5 career sacks is nothing to scoff at for a guy who's still chasing his next contract.
Now the question is whether some team decides the ankle is healed enough to bet on. A veteran edge rusher with his production, signed on a prove-it deal, is exactly the kind of low-risk addition a contender looks for late in the offseason or even midseason if injuries hit up front. Ngakoue's clearly betting on himself — the training videos say as much. Whether a front office bites remains to be seen.