Patriots defensive players shut down rising narrative about 2024 season

As the saga between the Patriots and Matthew Judon over a contract extension continued, there was a lot of optimism from fans that the star pass rusher would remain on the team for, at the very least, the upcoming season.

Because he was the most productive player on the defense since signing a contract in 2021, it seemed impossible that the new regime would trade him with the intention of maintaining a dominant defense. That's partly what made the eventual trade to the Falcons even more unbelievable for some, even if they did receive a great return in a third-round pick.

The offense is expected to be the struggle-filled side of the roster again this fall, so the defense will still likely be the main reason the Patriots get some wins. But that narrative changed slightly with Judon's departure.

Some began to suggest the Patriots were in full tank mode because of the trade since the decision to get rid of your best defensive player seemed counteractive with the objective at hand.

While his absence might prove to be a bigger problem than anticipated, it didn't take long for the new narrative to get back to the team, who quickly shut down the notion of a purposeful losing season ahead.

Matthew Judon's trade does not mean the Patriots are tanking their 2024 season

After their latest preseason game against the Eagles last week, MassLive spoke to Patriots defenders about the latest rumor surrounding Judon's departure.

Recently re-signed Davon Godchaux was adamant that tanking is not in the cards and anyone suggesting that's the plan is just trying to create trouble where there is none.

"I don’t believe that at all. I definitely don’t get the vibe that were tanking. Of course we’re going to miss our brother Judon. But we’ve worked too hard for that ... I definitely don’t get that vibe at all. It’s just outside people talking. It’s outside noise."

Considering the mass hysteria that followed Judon's trade, it's not surprising that the idea of tanking became a hot topic over the past week. While the deal might be questionable and not universally understood, the Patriots are not in a position to tank, nor have they given any indication they want to do that.

If anything, they've shown the complete opposite with everything they've done this offseason.

Another Patriots captain reiterated that point to MassLive. Deatrich Wise Jr. believes Judon's absence creates more opportunities for younger players to step up and show all the hard work they've done over the last several months to remain a top defense in the league.

"I’m not going to speak for the organization, and what made them do anything. But I will speak on the opportunity it provides other guys on this team, and the impact Judon had on this team ... with him not being here, it definitely saddens us, but at the same time, we know it’s the nature of the beast. And, we know we have to pick up where he left off.

We’ve trained too hard to let outside forces tell us what we can and cannot do. I think a lot of guys in here work super hard to be great. And we’re going to showcase that. Judon will be missed, but I know guys like Uche, Keion, Trystan Hill, myself will be able to ball out this year."

It might just be two players out of a large group of defensive players, but it's clear the team still has a positive mindset ahead of the new season in a few weeks and doesn't plan to let Judon's departure define how good they will be.

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