The Jaguars selected Ngakoue in the third round (69th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. He is the final member of the Jaguars' 2016 draft class to sign his rookie contract.

Ngakoue, pronounced "in-GAH-kway," finished his three-year career at the University of Maryland with 83 tackles, 33.0 tackles for loss and 21.5 sacks. Ngakoue, 6-2, 252, set the Maryland single-season sack record in 2015 with 13.5 and ranked second nationally in sacks per game (1.13). During his sophomore campaign, Ngakoue earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from the media and finished second on the Terrapins with 13.5 tackles for loss and six sacks. He appeared in 13 games as a freshman and tallied four tackles for loss and two sacks.