Josh Kendall, Chad Graff and Jeff Howe
According to a league source, the Atlanta Falcons strengthened their pass rush on Wednesday by acquiring edge rusher Matthew Judon from the New England Patriots. According to several league sources, the Falcons will trade Judon to New England in return for a third-round pick.
Judon, a fifth-round selection in 2016, was selected to the Pro Bowl in both 2019 and 2022. He has accumulated 66 1/2 career sacks. Despite having 28 total sacks in 2021 and 2022, he was limited to four games in the previous season by a biceps ailment. This offseason, Judon was not holding back when he expressed his disappointment to the Patriots about not getting a contract extension.
The third-round choice Bralen Trice sustained a ruptured ACL in the team’s preseason opener against Miami on Friday night, which derailed the Falcons’ attempts to address the issue in the summer. The Falcons are worst in the NFL in sacks over the last five seasons (138).
What this means for the Patriots
There are two ways to look at this trade for the Patriots.
On the one hand, for a disgruntled player who turns 32 on Thursday and is returning from a season-ending injury, this is fantastic value. Nearly every eligible player from the 4-13 disaster of last season has received an extension from the Patriots, but they have drawn the line with Judon. Even if he had been their greatest player for extended periods of time during the previous three years, it is difficult to understand how a 32-year-old with a history of injuries fits into a rebuilding team’s long-term aspirations.
However, the already dismal Patriots picture for 2024 becomes even more so. The Patriots’ pass rush was subpar the previous season without Judon. The only player with more than five sacks was Christian Barmore. However, Judon has since left, while Barmore has been declared out indefinitely due to a blood clot. Thus, the season may not be kind to the Patriots’ pass rush. This training camp’s offensive woes are on top of that, which could indicate a dismal outlook for 2024.
Nevertheless, the Patriots’ main objective is to develop for the future rather than to perform as well as possible this season. And in this instance, it entails trading a disgruntled veteran for a second-round draft selection. — Patriots staff writer Chad Graff
(Photo: Billie Weiss / Getty)
