Judon was selected in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens. In five seasons, he racked up 34.5 sacks. That production led to a four-year, $56 million payday with the New England Patriots. Judon then proceeded to notch 12.5 and 15.5-sack seasons but only played four games last season due to a biceps injury.
It’s been a contentious offseason for Judon and the Patriots, as the star defensive lineman was seeking a new contract and also had a confrontation with new head coach Jerod Mayo.
With Eliot Wolf leading the new front office in New England, the Patriots in rebuilding mode and the two sides unable to reach a contract settlement, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported on Wednesday that Judon will be heading to the Atlanta Falcons for a third-round pick.
Just in case you don’t know how good Judon is:
Atlanta is going to be real spicy this season. There’s a reason they call it Hotlanta! The quarterback situation has been addressed with the acquisition of Kirk Cousins and the selection of Michael Penix Jr. in the draft.
Out is Arthur Smith, who led the offense as if it was a siege against a fortified castle, having his soldiers carry the battering ram to the front gate. His replacement is Zac Robinson, who is a disciple of Sean McVay. While the Falcons won’t abandon the run game, the offense should attack defenses horizontally and vertically while opening up seams with a potent play-action passing game.
With the Falcons expected to put up points, that should force opposing offenses to be more aggressive and go to the passing game to keep up, which should allow plenty of opportunities to rack up sacks for the defense.
Welcome to Atlanta, Matthew Judon!
On DK Sportsbook, Atlanta is +3000 to win the Super Bowl, +1300 to win the NFC and -130 to win the NFC South.
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