Baltimore Ravens week 8 player spotlight: Yannick Ngakoue
The Baltimore Ravens have an important matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers this week and all eyes will be on the newly acquired Yannick Ngakoue.
After all sorts of rumors during the 2020 offseason that the Baltimore Ravens were going to make a move for edge rusher Yannick Ngakoue, the team finally pulled it off. Baltimore shipped away a 2021 NFL Draft third-round pick and 2022 NFL Draft fifth-round pick to the Minnesota Vikings for the 25-year old’s services. On the young season, Ngakoue has five sacks through six games.
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Now in Baltimore, Ngakoue is paired up across from Matt Judon and will also be rushing the quarterback with former Jacksonville Jaguars teammate, Calais Campbell. The three form a ferocious pass rush that will have any and all quarterbacks shaking in their cleats.
He’ll be needed now more than ever as the Ravens get set to face off against an AFC North rival in the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Through six games, Pittsburgh has allowed just eight sacks, tied for the second-fewest in the league. A major part of that success has been from left tackle Alejandro Villaneuva, who’s playing the best football of his career. With him anchoring down the outside, Ben Roethlisberger has enjoyed a marvelous season and is picking defenses apart with his weapons.
The Steelers might just be the best team in the entire league. If the Ravens want to be taken seriously, they need to take down Pittsburgh. That starts with taking down Roethlisberger.
Baltimore already has a fantastic pass rush, tying for fifth in the league with 22, and it’ll need it to play at its best. With the addition of Yannick Ngakoue, we should see it all come together.
Ngakoue will be put to the test against the Steelers. Judon has been far from impressive thus far and Campbell can only do so much by himself. Ngakoue will need to show out if the Ravens want a chance. It won’t be easy, either, as the aforementioned Villanueva has been a stud for the Steelers. Yes, even though it’s Ngakoue’s first game as a Raven, there are some mighty expectations to produce.
Simply put, Baltimore needs Yannick Ngakoue to become a facet to this pass rush from day one.
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With how talented we all know Yannick Ngakoue is and with the extra time he’s had to prepare, the Baltimore Ravens will be looking for an early return on investment from him. Baltimore is going to need everyone to play at the top of their game if they plan to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers. Regardless of it being his first game with the Ravens, Ngakoue will need to be stellar.