Drama between star edge rusher Matt Judon and the New England Patriots was the talk of training camp earlier this summer.
Judon was seen having an animated conversation with new Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo before leaving the sidelines during practice. He did not take part in practice sessions earlier in the summer as the four-time Pro Bowler angles for a new contract.
Judon is set to earn a mere $6.5 million in base salary this season. Despite missing all but four games in 2023 due to a biceps injury, he firmly believes that this is far below market value.
“We have a market, it’s set by the highest paid guy, then everybody falls in line until the next person is up to break that [top] contract,” Matt Judon said last week. “Coming from the season I had, I was injured mostly all season, so that’s not really where my market is. But like I said, I don’t think it’s $6.5 million.”
While things seem to be going better between the two sides as of late, that is not stopping teams from paying attention to this situation.
Related: Updated NFL trade rumors
Teams calling up New England Patriots about potential Matt Judon trade
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that multiple teams have inquired about the possibility of acquiring Judon from the Patriots. As of yet, there is no indication that New England plans on dealing its star edge rusher.
Judon, 31, recorded 28 sacks in his first two seasons with New England after coming over from the Baltimore Ravens. As mentioned above, he dealt with an injury this past season.
The edge rusher’s age coupled with the aforementioned injury could limit what New England receives in a potential trade.
Then again, the team is in the midst of a rebuild. It might make sense to get somethinf for him before he likely leaves for nothing in free agency next March.