5 Best Trade Landing Spots For Patriots’ Matthew Judon

As Matthew Judon approaches the final year of his contract with the New England Patriots, it has recently been reported by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, that there is some trade interest in the star edge rusher:

This makes plenty of sense, as Judon hasn’t received a contract offer he liked from the Patriots, and he would be set to hit free agency at 32 years old next offseason. Coming off of season-ending shoulder surgery, the best case scenario for Judon would be to get paid now.

Judon is a perfect trade candidate for every “win-now”

NFL

team, as the Patriots are kicking off a rebuild and Judon is going to be 32 years old to begin the 2024 season.

It doesn’t make sense for either side to force a relationship, as one player is reaching the end of his prime and wanting to get paid, while the Patriots are going through a rebuild. It would actually work out in the Patriots’ favor if they could acquire a draft pick in return for Judon, which could help them through the rebuilding process.

It’s always difficult for any team to trade away a star player, but it makes too much sense that Judon and the Patriots separate, and these five teams are good landing spots:

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1

Dallas Cowboys

After losing two rotational edge rushers in free agency, the Cowboys desperately need another defensive lineman.

Imagine a defensive line that consisted of

Micah Parsons

, DeMarcus Lawrence, and Matthew Judon? It would arguably be the best defensive line in the NFL. Jerry Jones has appeared to be reluctant to fill many of the

Dallas Cowboys

holes outside the

NFL Draft

, but the team desperately needs another edge rusher after Sam Williams was declared out for the 2024 season, with a torn ACL.

After Parsons and Lawrence, the Cowboys’ depth is pretty thin following the loss of Williams.

Marshawn Kneeland has flashed in the preseason, but you don’t want to blame lofty expectations on a rookie defensive lineman. Many of the other options on the defensive line are young players that lack experience. Judon would be the complete opposite.

With the departures of Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler Jr to the Washington Commanders, Dallas doesn’t really have a third edge rusher that they can trust in 2024. If the Cowboys really want to prove that they’re “all-in”, they need to be heavily involved in trade conversations surrounding Judon.

2

Chicago Bears

Based on the Bears’ offseason moves, they want to start winning right away.

Ryan Pace has been on a tear this offseason, making several trades, including trading for Keenan Allen and Ryan Bates. If he wants to make one more to dramatically improve the Chicago Bears in 2024, landing Judon would be the one.

Last season, the Bears finished 31st in sacks, with only 30.

It was clear they needed defensive line help when they acquired Montez Sweat at the trade deadline last season, but they’re going to need more than one player. Chicago has invested at the defensive tackle position in the 2022 draft with Gervon Dexter Sr. and Zacch Pickens, but there’s no additional pass rush help that is there at this time.

Not only can the Bears afford to trade for Judon, but they could probably pay him too. Judon’s coming off of a torn biceps tendon and is in his 30s, so he won’t be as costly as some of the younger premier edge rushers. This move would help the Bears in 2024 and beyond if they’re willing to extend him.

Considering Pace has made several moves to build around Caleb Williams, this could be the final trade that gets every NFL pundit talking about the Bears in 2024.

3

Los Angeles Rams

Adding Judon would fill a void for a veteran presence left by Aaron Donald’s retirement.

The

Los Angeles Rams

defensive line is going to be good for years to come, as they continued to upgrade the position group this offseason.

Clearly, this organization knows how important building a strong defensive line is, and that’s why it’s been an emphasis in their last two draft classes. The only problem is they lack experience, since

Aaron Donald

retired this offseason. If the Rams want to help their young defensive linemen in their development, adding a star edge rusher that can remove some of the attention from them will surely help.

It can’t be expected for Verse and Fiske to come in immediately as full-time players. But if they have someone like Judon, they can play an impactful rotational role. The Rams have built a talented team too, so this would only increase their chances of winning the NFC West. If they want to beat the San Francisco 49ers, making over-the-top moves like this are warranted.

4

Tennessee Titans

The Titans have taken advantage of their rookie quarterback contract in every way, except improving the defensive line.

Tennessee has two stars on the defensive line with Jeffrey Simmons and Harold Landry, but it doesn’t look as promising after that. This offseason, the Titans made a lot of improvements on both sides of the ball to surround Will Levis with the best possible team in his second season. Really, the only thing they failed to address was the defensive line.

Clearly, this front office wasn’t messing around, but the main area they failed to address was additional pass rush help. Adding Judon alongside Landry and Simmons would give this defense ample pass rush support, to help the additions they made across their entire secondary.

Similar to the Bears, Tennessee could make this work financially and with draft capital. Judon could help now, and for the future, as the Titans try to put together a competitive team around Levis.

5

Atlanta Falcons

Despite desperately needing pass rush help, the Falcons failed to make it a priority during this offseason.

When the Atlanta Falcons were on the clock with the eighth overall pick, it almost seemed like a guarantee that they would select a defensive lineman. Instead, the Falcons shocked the league and selected Michael Penix Jr. While they were able to acquire their future franchise quarterback, the desperate need for an edge rusher is still very apparent.

The largest investment that the Falcons made on the defensive line this offseason was drafting Bralen Rice with their third round draft pick, who will miss the entire 2024 season with a torn ACL (via Ian Rapoport). So, the void that was empty heading into this offseason, remains empty as the 2024 season quickly approaches.

Judon won’t fix the Falcons’ defensive line issues, but he will give them some help getting to the quarterback. Atlanta didn’t have a single player reach over seven sacks last season, with one of their best pass rushers in Bud Dupree, departing in free agency.

If the Falcons are seriously interested in fielding a competitive team, Judon needs to be on their radar.

All stats are courtesy of Pro Football Reference and Spotrac.

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