The contract stalemate between Matthew Judon and the New England Patriots appears to have reached a boiling point.
Judon is in the final year of his contract with the Patriots, and he has been seeking a new deal this offseason. He hinted at some frustration with the team a few weeks ago but chose not to hold out of training camp. However, Judon attended practice on Monday without a uniform on and was seen having animated conversations with head coach Jerod Mayo and two members of New England’s front office. Judon then left the practice field and has not been present since.
On Wednesday, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported that the Patriots have made a new contract offer to Judon. Russini said the offer “could help move things in the right direction.”
https://twitter.com/DMRussini/status/1818696119842459886
Judon quickly denied the report via social media. He told one of his followers on X to not “believe the lies” and said Russini’s report “makes me look bad again.”
No they haven’t but it makes me look bad again. Don’t believe the lies
— Matthew Judon (@man_dammn) July 31, 2024
In a recent podcast appearance, Judon said he sent a contract proposal to the Patriots but never received a response. He questioned why New England has not given him a new deal when the team has a significant amount of salary cap space.
It has likely added to Judon’s frustration that the Patriots have signed several other defensive players — most notably safeties Kyle Duggar and Jabrill Peppers and defensive tackles Christian Barmore and Davon Godchaux — to significant extensions this offseason.
Judon’s base salary for 2024 is just $6.5 million with roughly $1 million in incentives, so he is grossly underpaid relative to his production. He was limited to four games last season after he suffered a torn biceps muscle early in the year, but he had four sacks in those four contests.
Judon was arguably New England’s best defensive player in 2021 and 2022, totaling 28 sacks across the two seasons and appearing in all 17 games each year.
