Earlier this summer, the New England Patriots handed defensive tackle Davon Godchaux a two-year extension worth up to $21 million. That came after safety Jabrill Peppers, linebacker Jahlani Tavai and running back Rhamondre Stevenson also received new deals.
However, even with the newly installed front office handing out extensions like they are Halloween candy, Matt Judon has been on the outside looking in at the various paydays. And that doesn't appear to be sitting well with the pass rusher.
Judon is entering the final year of the four-year, $56 million contract he signed with the club in 2021. Judon skipped on out some of the voluntary portions of New England's offseason program but was present for mandatory minicamp. He also showed up and has recently been participating in daily training camp practices, but things are still rocky between the team and its star defender.
Other teams around the league have begun to take notice of Judon and New England's contractual impasse, with multiple teams reaching out to the Patriots about trading for him, according to ESPN.
During the first day of full pads July 29, Judon appeared in just a sweatshirt and was a non-participant. He and Mayo had an animated conversation on the practice field and later had another talk with front office leads Eliot Wolf and Matt Groh. Then, Judon was not present on July 30 at all. The Athletic reported on July 31 that Judon was missing because of his desire to seek a new contract. The report also noted that New England has made him a contract offer, but the pass rusher refuted that.
"No they haven't, but it makes me look bad again," he wrote on social media. "Don't believe the lies."
It also doesn't make things any easier for the relationship between Judon and the Patriots when the club just signed Godchaux to that two-year extension.
Given the strained relationship between the two sides, the Patriots not expecting to be competitive this season, and Judon -- who is coming off a season-ending bicep injury and is set to turn 32 years old this year -- not fitting their new timeline, a trade could make sense for all parties involved at this point. If they do decide to move on, here are a handful of logical landing spots for the star pass rusher.
Seattle Seahawks
There's some familiarity here with new Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald serving as the linebackers coach of the Ravens from 2018-2020. Judon was in Baltimore for the first five years of his career and the final three were spent with Macdonald coaching his position group. In that time, Judon also was named to two Pro Bowls. While Seattle possibly could use more of an off-ball linebacker, Judon would be a worthwhile pursuit to pair with Boye Mafe and Leonard Williams along the defensive line. One roadblock here could be Seattle's ability to hand Judon the extension he seeks, as the team only has roughly $10 million in cap space, per Over The Cap.
Atlanta Falcons
Similar to Seattle, money could be the key issue with this potential marriage as the Falcons have just $3.4 million in available cap space, but the need is there for them to get their books in order. Atlanta went all in this offseason boosting its offense, headlined by the signing of Kirk Cousins in free agency. While that side of the ball should be much improved than in seasons past, the Falcons could still use someone to pressure the quarterback if they want to seriously contend in the NFC.
Detroit Lions
This would be the type of trade that sends shockwaves throughout the NFL and signals that the Lions are not messing around. Detroit led the league in pressure rate last season, but there's an argument to be made that it could be even better with Judon opposite of Aidan Hutchinson. The Lions are coming off their most successful season in decades and are now trying to take another leap in 2024, so an all-in trade for Judon would make sense and could greatly help their newly improved secondary bounce back after a rough season in 2023. This landing spot would also put Judon in a situation where he could seriously contend for a Super Bowl. The Lions have $34.5 million in cap space, so an extension may not be out of the question here, either.
San Francisco 49ers
The Niners are firmly in a Super Bowl window, so it's not out of the question for them to continue to add to further help push them over the top. Kyle Shanahan's team also has star pass rusher Nick Bosa and added Leonard Floyd in free agency back in March, but the arrival of Judon could make this unit even more lethal. Judon himself even reposted a proposed trade to San Francisco by an X user earlier this offseason that had New England sending him and a second-round pick to the 49ers in exchange for wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. While that specific deal is unlikely as the 49ers are better off with Aiyuk (even if it's just for this season), they are an intriguing destination for Judon, especially as they have $52.2 million in available cap space.
