Matt Judon trade grades: Patriots ship their discontented star rusher to the Falcons No new contract is in place
Atlanta is also said to be creating capacity space when it buys New England’s former New England star
After four-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Matt Judon held-in at the New England Patriots training camp while in search of a new contract, the team has decided to move on from him, trading him to the Falcons for a 2025 third round pick, confirmed by Atlanta on Thursday.
The Falcons official social media page published, “We have agreed to terms, subjected to physical, to acquire Matthew Judon from New England. Welcome to the A.”
In the words of CBS Sports lead NFL insider Jonathan Jones, Judon will join Atlanta without any new contract and there’s “not an expectation one is imminent.” Judon will join Atlanta’s Falcons in 2024 under his current contract, which is that is set to earn $6.5 million.
In a possible related development that could be related, the Falcons changed the terms of their contract for the star guard Chris Lindstrom, making a portion of the $12.5 million salary base into a sign-up incentive, according to ESPN. This move could provide flexibility that could allow the Falcons to splash out on Judon with a new contract.
Judon’s 28.0 sacks in 2021 to 2022 are tied for the third-highest number in the NFL together with Steelers All-Pro T.J. Watt who is just behind 49ers All-Pro Nick Bosa (34.0) and Browns 2023 NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett (32.0) within that time. Judon had a strained lower bicep during Week 4 in the season 2023 which left him out for the rest of the season. Judon’s 2022 sack count (15.5) and 2021’s sack total (12.5) represent the third and fourth most sacks in a single season of Patriots history since sacks started being recorded as a standardized individual statistic in 1982.
Judon’s pressure on the quarterback of 15.7 percent over the last three years (since 2021) is the seventh highest across the entire league. It beats Watt’s 15.1 percentage over the same time period. However, Atlanta’s team’s the quarterback’s pressure of 27.6 percent as of 2021 is the worst among the entirety of the NFL which means it fills a huge need by implementing this change.
Atlanta is ranked 25th within Atlanta ranked 25th in the NFL with regard to quarterback pressure (32.7%)) and was tied with 21st place for the number of sacks (42.0) by 2023. So he’ll become a welcomed addition an organization whose biggest front-seven acquisition of the offseason was signing Clemson defensive player Ruke Orhorhoro in the second round (35th overall) of the 2024 NFL Draft. The Falcons have a third-round selection in the same category, Washington edge rusher Bralen Trice has been put on reserve after injuring his ACL during this team’s opener for the preseason.
The deal for Judon is a gruelling win for Atlanta after being unable to strike two times when trying to trade for help with pass rush during the course of last year. According to ESPN the Falcons tried to trade for Montez Sweat prior to that the Washington Commandos traded him to the Chicago Bears at the deadline for trades in 2023 to acquire the 2024 second-round selection. They also tried to trade to pick UCLA edge rusher All-American Laiatu latu in the most recent draft following choosing Washington 2023 Heisman Trophy third-placed quarterback Michael Penix Jr. 8th overall. Latu ended up being one of the first defensive player picked in April, after his selection by the Indianapolis Colts chose his 15th pick.
On the Patriots side the the new coach Jerod Mayo and executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf took a page from the former head coach of New England (and the person who made the decision on personnel) Bill Belichick’s book through flipping the player who was looking to earn a salary into his 30s.
Judon appears to be very happy about his new home Judon seems to be excited about his new home, sharing an Instagram account of Mercedes-Benz Stadium directions shortly after the initial reports about the deal.
With all this being said, now is the now time to award trade ratings for a deal that both parties achieved the things they wanted to see done in 2024 and perhaps over.
Atlanta Falcons: B-
The Falcons are determined to make it happen after failing to make the playoffs every one of the last six seasons. That’s commendable. They have signed the quarterback Kirk Cousins to the four-year contract worth $180 million, with a guarantee of $100 million after going through quarterback hell following the departure of Matt Ryan. They’ve have addressed their most pressing requirement (pass rusher) by signing Cousins to a deal. It’s also not an accident it’s the Falcons haven’t been to the postseason since 2016, and the last time players with more than double-digit sacks — the case of Vic Beasley with 15.5 — also happened in the year 2016.
Their B gradeis based on several factors, despite meeting the need. First, Judon was born in 1982 and just finished the season where the injury ended his season in Week 4. The second reason is that Judon isn’t signing a new contract that’s been in place, which ended up working badly in the instance of Reddick as well as his Jets. Reddick is seeking a deal to New York despite being acquired in the offseason since he does not have an agreement in place for a new one. Three, if they decide to agree to a new contract, they’ll likely be paying him the next two to three years for his previous production.
New England Patriots: B+
The Patriots are in the process of rebuilding, and which is why this deal is the most rational thing around the globe. What makes a team that was 4-13 and had the lowest offensive scoring unit (13.9 score per game) since 1992 have to pay an elite but a former pass rusher lots amount of cash in the near future? New England chose North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye third overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, and also announced the signing of Jacoby Brissett to a one-year contract in the offseason to serve as his coach.
This is a team that requires the most draft capital is possible to provide its new administration consisting of Wolf and Mayo the resources it requires to build a winning team over the next couple of years. The sole reason why the Patriots grade isn’t better is due to the fact that they weren’t able to get an early or second-round selection. Overall, a great job from Wolf as well as his New England front office to secure an extra Day 2 pick for an injured, aging player.