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Courtney Cronin, ESPN Staff Writer
Free agent defensive end Yannick Ngakoue is signing a one-year, $10.5 million contract with the Chicago Bears that includes $10 million in guaranteed money, his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The Bears will be Ngakoue’s fifth team since the start of the 2020 season. The pass-rusher has posted at least eight sacks in every season of his seven-year NFL career and is coming off a 9.5-sack season with the Indianapolis Colts in 2022.
The Bears have been exploring the market for a potential addition at edge rusher since the spring. Last season, Chicago was led in sacks by then-rookie safety Jaquan Brisker with four. The Bears’ pass rush pressured opposing quarterbacks on 22% of pass plays (second worst behind the Atlanta Falcons) and generated only 7.5 sacks from their defensive linemen.
The Bears’ 20 sacks in 2022 were the fewest in the NFL.
Chicago signed defensive end DeMarcus Walker in March and is looking to second-year edge rusher Dominique Robinson and fourth-year defensive end Trevis Gipson to be part of its rotation.
Ngakoue, 28, spent the first four years of his career with Jacksonville before the Jaguars placed the franchise tag on him during the 2020 offseason. He was traded from Jacksonville to Minnesota in August 2020, then played six games before being sent to Baltimore ahead of the trade deadline. Despite one-year stints in Las Vegas and Indianapolis in 2021 and 2022, Ngakoue’s production has not dipped.
Ngakoue has 65 sacks, 135 quarterback hits, 31 forced fumbles and 65 tackles for loss in his career.