Ravens Activate Former Pro-Bowl Defender Ahead of Crucial Bengals Matchup

The Baltimore Ravens have elevated pass rusher Yannick Ngakoue and running back Chris Collier from the practice squad to the active roster. Ngakoue signed to the Ravens practice squad on Sept. 24 and will make his season debut for the Ravens on Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals.

“I believe in God, and I believe that everything happens for a reason and it was meant for me to come back,” Ngakoue said, via Ravens.com. “We went through peaks and valleys, just going to different spots and different places, but I feel like ultimately it was meant for me to come back here and to give my best football.”

Ngakoue is in his second stint with the Ravens after previously playing for the team in 2020. Ngakoue was traded from the Jacksonville Jaguars to the Minnesota Vikings before the start of the 2020 season and then traded to the Ravens that October.

Ngakoue finished that season with three sacks and two forced fumbles over nine games with Baltimore.

“I’m a Maryland guy through and through, born and raised here. I love the locker room, love the guys here,” Ngakoue said. “We have a great quarterback, and I just want to be able to help get the ball back to the offense.”

After his initial tenure with the Ravens, Ngakoue had brief stints with the Las Vegas Raiders, Indianapolis Colts, and Chicago Bears before returning to Baltimore this fall. Ngakoue has battled injuries during each of the last two seasons.

CHICAGO, IL – NOVEMBER 09: Yannick Ngakoue #91 of the Chicago Bears rushes the passer during an NFL football game against the Carolina Panthers at Soldier Field on November 9, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. Ngakoue… Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images

In 2022, he played 15 games before landing on injured reserve with a throat injury. In 2023, Ngakoue last 14 games before going on IR with a broken ankle.

Since he was drafted in 2016 by the Jacksonville Jaguars, Ngakoue has 69 career sacks, 21 forced fumbles, two interceptions, and 13 pass deflections. Ngakoue joins a Ravens team that has begun the year 2-2.

While Baltimore dropped their first two games of the season to the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders, they have rallied with back-to-back wins over the Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills.

They will now look to earn a win in their first divisional game of the season. The Ravens’ defense currently ranks No. 1 in the NFL against the run, but fifth-last in the NFL against the pass. They are tied for eighth in total sacks, a figure they hope Ngakoue will help improve as he joins the team.