AFC North Rival Pursued Former Ravens DE

The Baltimore Ravens nearly lost a pass-rusher to their AFC North foe.

Nov 1, 2020; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens defensive end Yannick Ngakoue (91) rushes during the second half as Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Alejandro Villanueva (78) blocks at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images / Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

On Friday, the Baltimore Ravens officially said goodbye to defensive end Yannick Ngakoue for a second time after the New England Patriots claimed him off waivers.

As it turns out, that goodbye could've been a lot more difficult.

While the Patriots landed Ngakoue, another team put in a waiver claim for him. According to ESPN's Field Yates, that team was the Cincinnati Bengals, who the Ravens just beat 35-34 on Thursday night to sweep the season series.

The Patriots were joined by one other team in attempting to claim Yannick Ngakoue: the Bengals.

New England had priority over Cincinnati, otherwise Ngakoue - who was waived just priority to the Ravens defeating the Bengals - would have stayed in the AFC North.

— Field Yates (@FieldYates) November 9, 2024

The waiver order is the same as the current draft order, which according to Tankathon, has the Patriots in first and the Bengals at No. 12. As a result, Ngakoue went to New England rather than Cincinnati.

Ngakoue rejoined the Ravens on Sept. 24 and signed to the active roster on Oct. 15. In five games this season, he recorded five total tackles, four quarterback hits and 1.5 sacks. He appeared on 25 percent of defensive snaps throughout those five games.

Ahead of Thursday's game against Cincinnati, the Ravens placed Ngakoue on waivers to create a roster spot for running back Keaton Mitchell, who made his season debut in that game. Baltimore hoped to re-sign him to the practice squad if he cleared waivers, but of course, that wound up not being the case.

In 128 NFL games over nine seasons, Ngakoue has recorded 229 tackles, 146 quarterback hits and 70.5 sacks. He earned his first, and so far only, Pro Bowl selection in 2017 with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Now, he takes his talents to a New England team in the midst of a deep rebuild, hoping to help the defense out however he can.

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